Dark Chronicle
by SPG inc
Summary: The first, only, and probably last Dark Chronicle novelisation EVER, brought to you by the SPG corporation. Action, drama, romance; everything you could hope for.
1. Prologue: Future

_**This is it people. In spite of the warnings from tried and failed previous fics, I, SPG inc, am attempting a Dark Chronicle novelisation. Won't be completed for some years I'm afraid, but I'll do my best.**_

**Dark Chronicle**

**Prologue: Future**

The ornate suit of armor was a magnificent work of art, yet boring. The impressive workmanship was impractical and only for show, while the designs on the metal could only hold the attention of an experienced artist for more than a few seconds. The armor stood empty and impassive in the grand stone hallway, indifferent to the lightening outside, and to the ominous rumbles and crashes and flashes of light in the distance, and to the figures that were sprinting past.

The young princess ran as fast as she could, desperate to escape the vile creatures pursuing her. Her long, fire red hair tumbled about behind her as she ran with the energy that only a person fighting for their life could muster. As she turned a corner in the hallway she saw a door on the left side of the hallway that had been left open ajar. Although she kept running, her face paled in horrified realisation.

"What?" She cried "Those monsters are in my father's room! Father!"

She ran even harder, determined to get to the room, but she never made it. When she was just ten feet away a nearby window shattered as something jumped through it. The girl stopped dead as another creature joined the first, both of them of the same species as her pursuers. They were tall and thin, with crimson skin on their top halves and black below, claws the size of walrus teeth and disgustingly large, lizard like eyes set in their lower torsos.

The princess looked around herself. She was surrounded by four Griffin soldiers, and any moment now they would...

When a pair of the enemies leapt to attack she dived against the wall. Another one jumped at the cornered young woman, streaking its powerful bladed arms downwards. She darted away from the wall and seized a royal sword from one of the suits of armor. She spun round, lashing the blade so hard the sheath flew off and hit the nearest enemy on the upper body, and before it could recover the sword was stuck between it's eyes. It squealed pitifully before sinking into a lifeless crouch. Instantly the second soldier was engaged in a vicious dual. The Amazon parried and dodged, letting the enemy take the offensive. After a few seconds the thing overreached and the sword chopped down on it's exposed arm. Before the three limbed soldier could scream it was cut in half.

There was no chance to take a breath. A Griffin soldier dived. The girl rolled. The monster landed on top of her. It tried to use it's claws but found itself lifted into the air. The thing was light by human standards, but the princess still strained and stumbled under it's weight, so it was a relief when slammed against the window sill and allowed the soldier to tumble out the window and down to a messy death. That left one more.

It hesitated, uncertain after seeing the fate of his companions. That was it's undoing. The princess held out her left arm and a fireball erupted from the armlet just under her shoulder and travelled down her arm till it soured from her hand and smothered the Griffin soldier. It happened so fast the thing took a moment to realise it was dying.

The girl hadn't waited to see the last soldier's fate. A flash of light had come from the direction of her father's room and once again she ran towards it, sword in hand.

When she reached the door she stopped and listened. There was no sound. She forced the doors open, ready to fight. And then she froze.

A man stood in the centre of the room, but it was not her father. He was six- nearly seven foot tall, and had thick, pure white hair. He wore a black cape with two large purple stripes at the bottom and one in the middle, each one boarded with gold.

Before she could move, the figure casually turned his head and looked at her. Two long braids of hair fell down past the tanned face and onto the chest that was covered by a white vest and bandoliers, while his arms and legs were garbed in what looked like red Griffin soldier skin. He was obviously not human. He was as thin as the dead soldiers outside and had sharply pointed ears that were swept back. His eyes were pale grey and had pupils that were slightly larger than normal, and there were strange symbols on his forehead that weren't painted or burnt on, but were actually grown there.

The man smiled wickedly and chuckled at the girl in the doorway, before he turned away again and walked into a portal of blue that appeared from nowhere and then disappeared again, taking the stranger with it.

The girl, however, wasn't concentrating on him anymore. She was looking at the second figure lying on the floor.

The figure was still.

The figure was silent.

It was her father.

She dropped her sword and walked slowly towards him, astonishment turning gradually into despair.

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_**So here it is. Hope you like it. Please review and feel free to offer any ideas, suggestions or requests you may have. I'm afraid the next chapter will be a loooong time, so please bear with me**_


	2. Prologue: Present

_**Here we are, next chapter. And for those of you who are reading carefully, yes this is a second prologue- a prologue for the present. Pretty cool, huh?**_

_**PS. Of course I don't own Dark Chronicle**_

**Dark Chronicle**

**Prologue: Present**

**

* * *

**

**Dear Mother, how are you? **

**I'm doing fine.**

**So much has happened that I don't know where to start. Well I guess it's easiest to start at the beginning.**

**It all began that night. Right. The night of the storm.**

**

* * *

**

It was chucking it down. That was the only fair way to describe the weather. The people of Palm Brinks were scattering all over the town, running for drier places to spend their time.

Just on the town drawbridge a particularly important individual was making his way to work.

To look at him, most people wouldn't realise who he teenage boy was. His old hunting cap, patched denim dungarees and yellow jumper didn't betray anything about his rich heritage.

His name was Maximilian Zelmite, son of the richest man in town, Gerald Zelmite, who had made a fortune from his mining business thanks to the discovery of a revolutionary new fuel source. To the town, the family name Zelmite meant an old and wealthy family whose mining industry had led to the foundering of the town nearly two hundred years ago. However, to the town, the boy running across the bridge was simply 'Max'; friendly, energetic, generous young man, and a technician in training (much to his father's disapproval).

Max sprinted down the street towards the short stairway leading to the entrance of the maintenance shop. In actual fact, It wouldn't make much difference if he ran or stopped for a rest, he was already far too soaked. As Max reached the steps he shouted a hasty greeting to his friend Donny, who waved back and for some reason ran down the ally at the side of the maintenance shop rather than to his dad's store across the street. Max didn't waste time trying to find an answer behind one of Donny's strange actions. He was too busy vaulting the steps to the shop.

Once he was inside, he took off his cap and vigorously rubbed his sandy coloured hair.

"Aww, I'm soaked." he complained.

As he tried shake his cap dry, a voice over to his left chuckled "Ah, Max, pretty early today, eh."

Max looked over to where the voice came from. His boss, Cedric, was sitting with his feet on the desk, reading. Like Max he wore dungarees, but instead of a jumper he wore a white t-shirt, regardless of how cold it was. His weather beaten face had dark grey tufts for a bearded chin and moustache, and he wore an orange baseball cap backwards on his head. Despite his forlorn face, he was a friendly old man, and he always insisted that people call him by his first name.

Max smiled and said "Yeah, I guess. But take a look at this."

He produced a piece of paper from his tool satchel.

"Ha ha! Tada!" he cried. "Check this out! I got a ticket for Flotsam's Circus Troupe.

"Oh, good for you." Cedric said, before frowning and adding "Your Dad's not gonna try to stop ya?"

Max put the ticket away and said "He said I could go!" unable to keep the surprised cheerfulness out of his voice about his father's unexpected leniency.

Cedric smiled craftily at Max's luck and joked "Well, you'd better finish your work quick then, huh?"

"Right!" Max laughed in return.

"Hey Max." Cedric suddenly sat forward. "What's that you've got there?"

Max looked down at his chest where Cedric was gazing and cringed in embarrassment as he saw the heavy pendant he'd forgotten to take off as soon as he was out of his house.

"What this? Father gave it to me yesterday." Max confirmed, emphasising the word 'Father' so Cedric would know the necklace wasn't worn out of choice.

"Always wear it he said. It's pretty old. I don't know what it is." Max added, trying to disassociate himself from the ridiculous pendent.

Cedric adjusted his glasses and leaned forward for a better look at the red stone that was set in what looked like brass. Max felt uncomfortable with the attention Cedric gave the stone, so he said "Well, can I get started?"

"Huh?" Cedric refocused on Max. "Oh sure. Gable's vacuum is set up below. Go to it lad."

"Leave it to me." Max said as he picked up his old wrench and headed down the stairs. As he disappeared from Cedric's sight, Max headed past the large ridepod that Cedric was working on, and over to the desk with the broken vacuum.

* * *

Max saw strange things before him. He saw clowns with short swords and a large circus tent. Then he saw the moons; the twin moons shining bright in the sky. Then one of the moons vanished and the other blazed an angry red. Then it became surrounded by gold and Max realised it was the stone. He reached out, knowing he needed it, but as his hand touched it, it changed into...Gable's vacuum?

Max jerked upright. He'd been dreaming? He'd only meant to rest his eyes. And what was that dream all about? He looked at the nearby alarm clock.

"Oh no" he said as he saw it was nine o'clock. "It's about to start. Why didn't it go off?" he looked at the clock, noticed for the first time the alarm was broken, and cursed under his breath as he ran for the door. As he passed the desk he noticed Cedric had gone.

"He's gone?" Max said in surprise, but he didn't bother stopping. He ran out of the shop and sprinted down the street to the town square.

The square was alive with lights and noise, dominated by the large circus tent in the centre. Outside, some street artists and instrument playing towns people were putting there skills to use to try and earn some spare change, a circus actor was juggling knives to a small group of impressed (and wary) spectators, and stalls selling just about anything lined the sidewalks, though most people had gone into the circus tent by now.

Max sprinted to the archway that marked the entrance to the square, weaving dexterously through the throng of people. As he reached the tent, a pale blue and white suited clown wearing a sleeping cap held out his hand and said in a bizarre voice. "You need a ticket to go in."

Max pulled the thick paper strip from his satchel and handed it to the clown, still fuming about his lateness. However, just the ticket was about to be taken, a red haired kid darted in front of Max, grabbed his ticket and ran off.

"HEY!" Max yelled as he chased after the boy. "MY TICKET!"

Max ran almost halfway round the tent before he lost sight of the boy. He couldn't believe it'd happened. The first time he'd got to go to the circus and someone had stolen his ticket out of his hand. Grinding his teeth in frustration, he quickly headed to the nearest person, who turned out to be Rosa, the old maid who worked at Max's house.

"Did you see a red headed boy run by?" Max asked breathlessly.

"Oh. Yes, just now." Rosa smiled slightly. "I'm certain I saw him heading that way." she said, pointing towards the other side of the square. Worried that the boy would double round and get in the circus, Max ran as fast as he could. When he had run almost the rest of the way round the tent, he stopped. He spotted a girl, Corrine, standing nearby and asked her "Did you see a little red headed boy come by here?"

"Me? No, sorry."

Max sighed in utter hopelessness. He had just about decided he wouldn't find the boy when suddenly some balloons tied to a nearby stall shifted and banged together, catching Max's attention. Not daring to hope he crept towards the stall and ducked down in front of it. There was a shuffling over to his left. He snuck round the corner, but found nothing. He edged toward the next corner when he heard a slapping sound, like the sound of a bear footed person jumping to their feet on tarmac.

Max stood upright.

"HEY!" he shouted as he saw the kid running back the way he'd come.

Max chased after him

The boy was pretty fast for his age. He only looked about ten years old at the most, yet Max was hard pressed to catch up with him. However, as they ran past the road leading to the town gates, the kid slowed down. Quickly catching up, Max dived and they both went tumbling. Corrine, who was still nearby, shrieked and ran off, overreacting as usual.

Max got to his feet, anger and triumph on his face. As the kid stood up, Max held out his hand and growled "Hand over the ticket."

"I'm sorry." the kid said, surprising Max with his sincerity. "I just wanted to see the circus. Just once."

As Max took back his ticket he looked at the boy, and then began to feel guilty. From the look of his clothes, the boy was probably too poor to afford a ticket. He was wearing only a thin white shirt which went down to his thighs and his red hair was long and messy, concealing his eyes.

"You really want to see the circus, huh?" Max asked, noticing the kid's knees were cut from when Max knocked him down.

The kid looked at his feet.

"I'm sorry. I promise I'll never do it again." the boy said, sounding ashamed of himself. Max looked from the scruffy youth to the ticket in his hand and thought _'I'm going to regret this.'_

"OK, here you go."

The would be thief looked up, wearing an expression of astonishment.

"Really, for me!" he said, taking the ticket from Max's hand.

"Sure. I'll go see it next year." Max said, hiding his disappointment.

"I… thanks! I don't know wh-!"

"You better go now, it's about to start."

"Oh thanks! Really!" he beamed before he ran off.

Max sighed. Another year he hadn't seen the circus. He'd never even seen it once before since his parents had strictly forbidden it; both his father and his mother before she'd gone.

Max glanced towards the town gates down a nearby street. Maybe he could play the old game of imagine a way to get outside the town. He hated the way the gates always stayed shut, how the only correspondence with the outside world was Flotsam's circus, and how for no apparent reason the only person who'd left town since Max could remember was his mother, Lady Elaine Zelmite. No one else had ever gone outside since then, and it was something that had always bugged Max.

And now that it was on his mind, he wouldn't be able to stop thinking about it. He berated himself for rousing his own curiosity and began to head back to the maintenance shop.

But, as he turned his head forward again, he saw the kid had stopped just a few feet away, and he was staring at Max with a cunning smile on his face.

Before Max could do anything, something happened. Suddenly… there was nothing. He couldn't see, couldn't hear, couldn't even feel the cold night air.

Max, at first confused started approaching panic, until he realised there was a light directly around him, He was looking around, trying to understand what had happened, when he heard the voice.

"You passed."

Max looked straight ahead. The red haired kid was still there, but he wasn't speaking in the voice he had before. This voice was feminine, and it wasn't just that the boy's voice 'sounded' feminine. It was the voice of a young girl; a voice that Max felt himself drawn to, in spite of the situation.

"You might be able to do it." the boy said, girls voice again. "Hurry, the first door is waiting for you." with that, the boy transformed into a blue light which flew away.

Then everything was back. The town, the circus, the night air. Max froze, confusion nearly overwhelming him.

"What is going on?" Max questioned out loud, wondering if he'd gone mad. Perhaps he'd hit his head on something in Cedric's shop; that would at least explain how he'd ended up falling asleep. But it only took a second for Max to be sure that hi head was completely undamaged. He took a few tentative steps forward, thinking of heading back home to sleep, or maybe even going to see Doctor Dell. As he walked, he looked down at his feet...and jumped a foot in the air. The ticket was lying on the ground in the same place the boy had been standing. Now Max thought he really was going mad.

By instinct he bent down to pick up the ticket, not noticing the tiny blue light on it. As soon as he touched it however, the blue light disappeared and Max felt a warmth go though his body and a calmness spread through his troubled mind. Suddenly, Max decided he was overreacting. He was still concerned about what happened, but that didn't mean he should give on the circus for the fifteenth time in his life. He could think about the red haired kid later.

Max straightened up and headed steadily to the front of the tent, determined to finally see Flotsam's circus.

Inside the tent, Max was thinking he should have gone home after all. The crowd was huge and Max couldn't see a thing, expect for the occasional clown shooting up into the air and down again.

"This is no good, I can't see anything." he complained out loud. He moved around the tent looking for a gap, but found none. As he came near the back of the tent something caught his eye. A ladder leading up to the scaffolding that went round the perimeter of the tent. Max knew he shouldn't go up it, but he'd get a great view from there. And if he was caught he could just charm his way out of trouble.

Making sure no one was watching he quickly climbed the ladder.

"Wow!" Max laughed as he saw a huge man in the ring juggling clowns. Each one spun round three or four times in the air till the strong-man caught them and threw them as effortlessly as before. Soon though, the juggling came to an end. The four clowns and juggler bowed and left the ring, making room for the next act; Linda the tattooed elephant, the star act.

As the huge, grey beast lumbered to the centre ring, she was met by Milane, the weapon shop owner who sometimes took part in performances. The young woman, dressed as a showgirl, stood next to the elephant and whispered in it's ear, and it nodded in conformation.

Linda sucked a large inflatable ball onto her trunk and threw it in the air. A split second later the elephant crouched, and back flipped into the air and kicked the returning ball so it bounced off several spotlights. When she landed, Linda rose onto her hind legs and caught the ball, allowing it to spin on her trunk like a basket ball player would spin a ball on his finger. Linda dropped the ball to the applause of the townspeople, but it wasn't over. She pointed up with her trunk and everyone looked to see a clown swing and jump from a trapeze, only to be caught on the end of a long line of clowns hanging on another trapeze. The momentum of the new arrival cause the end of the clown chain to swing upwards and make a loop with themselves. And then Milane jumped out of nowhere, fifty feet in the air, though the loop and back down again. Everyone assumed Linda must have thrown her, till they realised Linda had vanished, and only Milane stood in the centre ring. The crowd cheered madly while Milane struck a pose sent a wink in Max's direction when she noticed him on the balcony.

Max was beaming in excitement. He was so enthralled with the display that when he heard someone speaking nearby he didn't notice until there came a loud exclamation of "OH, well if it isn't my favourite roasted chestnuts!"

Max looked towards the nearby tent flap that lead back into the staff and storage area of the tent. He couldn't help feeling interested it what was going on, and since it was the half time interval, he moved towards the open flap.

Inside, he found himself at the top of a wooden balcony overlooking a storage area. A staircase to his left led down, but he thought it best not to give himself away, so he hoisted himself onto the banister and looked down.

Below him were two people. One was a fat clown with a purple suit jacket, cream coloured trousers and top hat. He had a thick cane and thick, orange, cavalier styled hair with a stringy moustache. He was instantly recognisable as the circus ringmaster Flotsam. The other man had blond hair and well groomed moustache and tuft of a beard. He wore a white shirt with an expensive red waistcoat, tie and trouser set. It was Mayor Need.

"So," Flotsam said in a rather upper class accent "have you found it?"

The mayor adjusted his half moon spectacles nervously.

"Well, not yet. You see…" he tried to reply in a voice that sounded nervous even by his standards, but Flotsam cut him off.

"Now, now mayor, are you _really _trying hard enough?" Flotsam said as he tapped his cane on Need's head in a playful manner. "You know what happens if you don't find the stone," he gently laughed, then added sharply "don't you?"

Max was confused. What was going on? Flotsam wasn't a citizen of Palm Brinks, but he had no right to be speaking to the mayor like that. Max almost spoke to try and back up Need, before the man himself spoke.

"Wait, please. I'm trying my best. I need more time."

"Ah well, what can you do? But remember, this chance is your last." Flotsam shouted the last few words.

"Are you sure the stone is in this town?" Need asked hopefully.

Flotsam laughed cruelly at the mayor's optimism.

"Oh yes." He laughed, then sniffed the air and closed his eyes as though savouring some wonderful scent. "I can smell it. _I can smell it!_ The stone is in this town! Absolutely!"

"But we turned the mine inside out looking for it, we couldn't find a trace."

Flotsam stared at the Mayor for a moment with a blank expression, before striking him hard in the face with his cane.

Need fell over from the force of the blow, glasses shattering, cheek swelling up instantly. He yelled in pain, but before he could recover Flotsam pulled him to his feet from behind and started strangling him with the cane.

"Oh sweet mayor, we've been though this," Flotsam said, his voice horribly mocking as the mayor struggled to escape the choke hold. "I told you before, I DON'T TOLORATE EXCUSES!" Flotsam dropped Need and kicked him on the floor so he could step on his back, ignoring the man's strangled gasps.

"But the people of this town really are living the sweet life, eh?" Flotsam's voice was now sinister and threatening. "Not knowing anything about the outside world, they're lost in their care free lives. With such a pack of _ninnies_, no wonder they can't find a single stone." Flotsam laughed, while the mayor looked up in horror.

"You can't tell anyone about the outside, there'd be a panic; then no one could look for your stone."

Flotsam glared at the mayor and hissed "I know Mayor Need, so let's keep it our-little-secret."

As Flotsam reached out for the cringing mayor again, Max shifted, wanting to help the mayor, but afraid to move. That's when his foot nudged a bucket over the balcony.

The clatter got the ring master's attention immediately. He looked at the fallen bucket then upwards so he was looking at Max. Max just stayed still, horrified by the situation.

"WHO ARE Y-" Flotsam began to shout, but he suddenly stopped and stared at Max in surprise. In the silence, Mayor Need raised his head.

"Max?" he questioned, before shouting "RUN! HURRY!"

The shout broke the spell and Max ran as fast as he could while Flotsam looked about him and yelled "Wake up you idiots!"

Seven boxes in the room burst open and seven clowns dived from them, throwing aside their blunted acting swords and drawing real pairs of miniature sabers from their belts.

"Did you see it?" Flotsam shrieked with glee. "The red stone around that boy's neck? We found it, at last!" he laughed like a lunatic, until he noticed his clowns were joining in.

"WHAT ARE YOU WAITING FOR? GET 'IM!"

The clowns jumped, soaring up to the balcony. With a final blow to the side of Need's head, Flotsam ran back into the storage area thinking _'Time to get the grand finale.'_

Max ran. It was all he could do. Three clowns were now chasing him along the scaffolding around the tent. As they ran Max saw that there was a large gap in the walkway coming up. When he got to it he stopped. It was a fifty foot drop, and Max didn't feel like trying to jump it, being afraid of heights. He looked back, wondering if he could talk his way out of the situation. As he watched, the nearest clown raised his sword and dived at Max. Suddenly his vertigo disappeared.

Max jumped and just managed to grab onto the ledge opposite him. The attacking clown, not realising the drop ahead of him, sped up to catch Max and promptly fell. His two fellows stopped, then backed up so they could take a running jump. By the time they'd crossed the gap, Max had pulled himself up and was running again, jumping another gap without hesitation.

As Max came towards the front of the tent, he saw the scaffolding ended at another ladder. But even as he ran towards it, another clown jumped up onto the walkway in front of Max. Max didn't stop. Instead he prayed that the limited amount of martial art training he'd done a year ago would help him now.

The clown went for a disembowelling strike. Max jumped, slammed his left foot down on the clowns hand to give him some extra height, and then his right foot on the clowns head, knocking him cold.

But there were more climbing up the ladder, and the two already on the balcony were getting closer. Max took the only choice he had. He ran to a nearby pillar and began hauling himself up into the rafters. Four clowns followed. As soon as Max reached the top he walked precariously across a support beam. Yet as he came to the middle of the beam, he saw another four clowns coming up on the opposite side. Max stopped to think, wobbled dangerously and then was knocked down as a clown jumped him from behind. Max fell to the left, and by shear luck landed on a large spotlight. His would be attacker fell to the right and plunged into oblivion. The three behind him ignored his fate, jumping onto the spotlight after Max. As they crawled onto the top of the spotlight where Max stood, all of them where thinking _'No chance...'_

What they didn't anticipate was the spotlight breaking loose under their weight and falling down to the ring.

If it hadn't been for the safety net, all of them would probably have been killed. As it was, the net broke their fall even as it snapped, and while the clowns were knocked out on impact, Max dived clear as they crashed and didn't suffer a scratch.

Once back on terra firma, Max discovered he was standing in the centre ring while the crowd looked on in amazement. Max grinned weakly and waved gingerly, embarrassed at being the centre of attention to the whole town. Then his smiled turned to horror as the four remaining clowns from the rafters jumped down and landed with their acrobatic agility, surrounding the young boy. Max's hands flew over his belt, looking for something that might help him. As he felt his tool satchel he found something hanging from his hip. His wrench! He must have stuck it there when he'd finished working on the vacuum and forgotten about it. It was seventeen inches long and made of steel with a weighty head; a useful improvised weapon. He quickly drew it and prepared to fight for his life.

The clowns attacked as one, charging forward, aiming blows at Max's neck. He quickly rolled clear and swung his wrench to deflect a pursuing blade. The clowns lined up as Max stood to face them.

The crowd was in confusion, unsure if this was the next act or if they were actually witnessing a brawl.

Max made the next move, jumping forward and swinging his wrench onto the chest of the clown on the far right. Max sidestepped as the clown stumbled past him, swinging his swords wildly. Max swung his wrench in a wide arc, catching the clown on the back of the head and knocking him out. Two of the remaining clowns rushed Max. One slammed both his swords hard against Max's wrench, practically knocking it from his grasp. The other sent careful chops and swipes that Max struggled to knock away. He managed to land a blow to the attacker's hip, but the second clown lashed out from the right, and Max yelped as a painful slice branded his cheek. He jumped away and quickly began to perform a Macto-Arma martial art move. He tensed all the muscles in his limbs and torso, and focussed on building up his strength. When the clowns got close he unleashed a powerful spin attack which knocked both of the enemies down.

That left one more.

Max, feeling confident in remembering his fighting skills, jumped and swung his wrench downwards, hoping to dispatch the clown like the first one. The clown twisted his body so the tool glanced off him and he slashed at Max. Max fell on his knees, a sword cutting open his back. For a moment his body went numb with pain, but Max forced himself to move. Just before the clown could send a decapitating blow, Max struck his legs and knocked him to the floor. Max quickly jumped to his feet and brought his wrench down on the clown's head with a dull _'whump'_, and the fight was over.

Max looked at his trusty wrench almost in awe of how it had saved his life. He didn't have much time though. As Max put the wrench back in his belt, another four clowns fell from above and into the ring.

Max groaned.

"Oh sh-" before he could use any appalling language, the clowns charged and Max sprinted away, vaulted the fence, pushed through the crowd and escaped the tent.

As Max ran from the square two clowns followed, the other two hanging back to control the panicking crowd.

Max headed towards the sheriff's office, hoping beyond hope he could outrun his attackers. He glanced over his shoulder. The clowns were getting closer.

Max looked around for something that might help him. He spotted a nearby lamp post with wire twisting around it that might provide some grip. With a feeling of déjà vu Max jumped onto the lamp post and began to climb. A clown made a lunge for Max's foot, but the boy shook free and clown hit the post, breaking his nose.

At the top of the lamppost, Max jumped across to a roof and began climbing and sliding on the tiled slopes. Max stopped when he came to a roof he recognised; Cedric's shop. He climbed out onto an old steel chimney that hung over the edge of the roof and above the road. Max turned back and found only one clown had followed. The clown climbed after Max while Max himself moved back onto the large head of the chimney, which gave him some extra height. As Max drew his wrench the clown stabbed at his legs.

Max jumped, over the clown, spinning upside down in the air, bringing his wrench against the back of the clown's head. The clown was knocked forward and he tumbled down into the road, while Max landed on his feet on the chimney.

Max held his wrench up and cried "Yes!" but then he heard a familiar laugh.

And then over the rooftops dived something Max did not want to see.

Flotsam's greatest creation was the clockwork performing machine, Halloween. It was as big as a house, and consisted of a huge clown face with six giant limbs connected to the top of it's head, the joints covered in pulsating radioactive green lights. The back two legs had large comical shoes on. The other four had large gloved hands. The 'feet' and middle 'arms' were used for walking. One of it's front arms held a giant torch that was shining on Max. Another held Flotsam.

"Hand over the pendent boy. Hand it only and I'll yet you leave here alive!" Flotsam yelled gleefully.

Max was confused for a moment, but then the penny dropped.

"Pendent? You want this?" Max said as he reached for the stone, unwilling to die for some stupid necklace.

_"Don't do it!"_ a voice yelled.

Max looked around in surprise. It was that voice; the voice the red haired kid had used.

Apparently, Flotsam hadn't heard a thing.

"Well, what's it going to be?"

As Max looked back at Flotsam, the voice spoke again, in Max's head.

_"You can't give it to him. It's too important."_

Right now, Max didn't think an old stone took priority over his life, but just like when he first heard the voice, he felt drawn to it and decided he wanted to trust it's owner.

Max let go of the necklace and looked defiantly at the circus ringmaster.

"HAND IT OVER! _NOW!_" Flotsam screamed, while Halloween beckoned with a huge hand.

"No. I won't." Max voice was steady.

"Well," the clown sneered "If it's going to be that way, THEN DIE!"

Halloween bounded onto Cedric's roof. Max escaped being squashed by jumping off the roof and grabbing hold of a colourful banner that stretched across the street. As soon as he hit the ground he started running again. But he wasn't fast enough.

Halloween landed behind Max and took a massive swipe at him. It missed, but the displaced air was enough to blow Max over. He rolled over and looked up, only to see the machine raising it's hand to crush him.

"Nowhere to run now boy." Flotsam laughed, and the horrible whiny tone urged Max to wipe the smile of the madman's face.

Max jumped up and rolled out the way of certain death, running under the machine.

While Flotsam yelled at his clockwork henchman to turn round, Max heard someone shout "Max, this way!"

Max saw his friend Donny leaning round the corner of the alleyway he'd gone to earlier that day. Max followed him to an open sewer pipe which they both jumped into.

The simple computer brain controlling Halloween finally worked out what it's over emotional master was yelling. It jumped, spinning round in the air so it faced the way it had just come. It stomped down the street, briefly flashed it's torch down the ally where Max was hiding, and then continued stomping away, heading in the direction of the town square.

**

* * *

**

**I was so scared then...**

**But in a way it was really fun.**

**

* * *

**

Max poked his head out of the manhole to check no one else had seen him. As he looked about he noticed the moons in the sky. The yellow moon was full that night, yet the blue moon that was permanently half covered by the yellow was still just as bright. As Max looked at them, he was surprised to find that he was feeling excited, almost happy at what just happen. With one last look around, he ducked into the sewer and pulled the lid in place.

* * *

**I mean, every boring day had been just the same for me. But this...this was the beginning of a real adventure.**

**

* * *

**

_I'll take my chances, racing time_

_Re-writing the book_

_For all to see_

_On my own, I can ride the winds of change_

_To heal a broken time, a broken world_

_In the dark_

_A candle is the sun_

_To light our way back home_

_It's a dream_

_It's a hope_

_That one day we'll be free_

_Give me strength to open up the door_

_Only the strong ones_

_Can stand the test of time_

_Caught in between these two worlds_

_Finding our way_

_The sun will rise_

_To pierce the sky_

_When this wonderful world_

_Starts to shine_

_When this wonderful world starts to shine…_

* * *

X

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_**Sorry it took so long people, but it's worth it don't you think? (please say it's worth it)**_. _**So, once you're done reading it, please leave a review to say what you think of my hard work.**_

_**Thank you**_


	3. Journey to the Outside pt 1

_**Chapter three. I'm afraid the story might get a bit poor from here on because I intend to skip out most things that happens in the dungeons unless integral to the story, But please, still read and review this chapter**_

**Dark Chronicle**

**Chapter One: Journey to the Outside**

**Part 1- Battle with Rats**

As soon as Max reached the bottom of the ladder he started gasping for air. The chase had worn him out.

Donny landed in front of him and asked "You okay?"

When Max could speak again he replied "Yeah..." then, looking at his friend with a hat resembling a giant sock, he added "You saved me Donny."

"Hey, don't mention," Donny said casually as he tried to push his thick black hair out of his eyes. "Who were those guys?"

"Flotsam's circus troupe." Max said grimly.

"Why are they after you?"

Max paused. For some reason he didn't want to give away the truth that they were after his pendant, so he said "I think I heard something I wasn't supposed to. I didn't understand what was going on but I needed to get out of there fast." It was close enough to the truth.

"Yeah." Donny stated in a tone suggesting he'd made some valid point. Max, familiar with Donny's way of speaking, knew that the current topic was over.

"Donny, what is this place?" Max asked as he looked around. Rather than being in a sewer pipe, Max was standing on a wide, circular, metal piller. A ladder to the right went down a few feet to a path that only just stayed above the water line. The path led to a tall, rectangular archway which in turn led into a stone passageway. A stones throw away from the pillar, the walls were covered in twisting pipes and large water wheels. Dominating the top of the pillar was something that looked like a piston. Under its overhanging beam a tent and camp fire had been set up.

"It's the underground water channel supplying the town." Donny replied, dusting off his black shorts and blue shirt before leading Max towards the tent. As they walked, Donny laughed and said "You could call it my secret base. Those clowns'll never find you here; stay as long as you want."

At the tent, Max sat down to think while Donny went to find something to patch up Max's back (seeing as Donny's ambition was to become a trader and store owner like his dad, he always had useful stuff lying around, though it was rare for him to give it away free).

Max was grateful for Donny's offer, but he didn't like the idea of hiding in the water channel for days. Not just because it was cowardly, but because he felt Flotsam and his pet lunatics would find him eventually if he stayed in one place for too long.

Thinking about the water channel, Max found himself remembering his home; a large mansion with a small stream flowing through its garden and down to the town canal. A stream that was fed by the river that the water channel must draw from.

Max wondered how his father was, and if he'd heard out the circus incident yet. Would he be worried about Max, or angry about the trouble he'd caused? Max honestly didn't know. He wished his mother was still there. He knew she'd be worried about him, even though he could remember so little about her.

But she was gone. She left home when he was five and went outside the town.

Max, not liking where his thoughts were going, forced himself to think of something else. He immediately began thinking of what it must be like outside. Max frowned, feeling hopeless, but then he had a brainwave.

When Donny arrived with some fairly clean bandages, Max asked "The underground water channel. So, this must lead outside the town, right?"

"Hmm?" Donny looked up from applying some gauze to Max's back. "Yeah, I guess."

As they secured a bandage round Max's mid-rift, Donny noticed the thoughtful look on his friends face.

"Hey Max, what are you cooking up?"

"Something's going on in the outside world."

"What?"

"That Flotsam guy is threatening the mayor. I'm not sure why, but he said that the people of this town are living care free lives, not knowing what's going on outside. Ever since Blackstone railroad closed down no one's _been_ outside. And it's not that people don't leave, they can't leave. The mayor never opens the gates. It must be so people don't see the outside world."

"Yeah, I guess your right."

"I'm going." Max stood up determinedly.

"Huh? What?" a stunned Donny asked.

"That's right, I'm leaving this town."

"Hold on now. Seriously?" Donny looked nervous. "But there're all kinds of weird creatures in the channel."

"Don't worry." Max assured as he took out his wrench. "I usually use this for fixing things, but it makes a pretty useful weapon."

Donny sighed and said "Guess there's no stopping you. Hold on a minute." Donny went back into his tent. Max, expecting a long wait, was surprised to see Donny come back immediately, holding a...

"A Classic Gun?" Max asked, surprised as he took the old pistol from Donny's outstretched hand.

"My babe," Donny said fondly "but you'll need it more." he then looked solomn "It gets a little rowdy round here, be careful. And take this radio, that way we can keep in contact while you're in the channel." he handed Max a radio.

"Thanks Donny." Max said, before heading towards the ladder, and them jumping rather than climbing down to the next level.

"Donny, I need you to stay here and watch out for those clowns." Max called back as he headed for the stone passageway.

"Sure, whatever yo-" Donny began, but then he stopped and said "Hey, why do I have to stand watch?"

Max was already at the archway.

"Max?"

He turned back.

"Sorry Donny but," Max struggled to think of someway to explain things, but their was just too much going on in his head for even Max to make sense of. In the end he said lamely "I wanna see the outside world with my own eyes."

With that, Max turned and headed into the tunnels of the underground water channel.

* * *

As Max headed down some stone steps he took out his radio.

"Donny, I'm in the channel, but it's like a maze down here. I could get lost pretty easily." Max said as he looked at the crossroad ahead of him.

"Okay," Donny's artificially transmitted voice came though the receiver. "Then you need to find the 'Floor Map'. There should be a copy in one of the chests on that floor. To move to the next area, you'll need to find the key handle to winch up the door to the next level. It's probably being held by one of the monsters on that floor. You need to kill it to collect the key."

Max groaned slightly at the thought of having to hunt monsters till he found this key. Donny must have heard him because he added "You're a great fighter, so you'll be fine. If you need any help, just give me a buzz."

Max nodded, added an "Okay." when he remembered Donny couldn't see him, and shut off the radio.

Max found the monster with the key handle surprisingly quickly. As he headed down the path to his left, he found a rat.

A huge, damp furred, miserable looking rat towered a head taller than Max, balancing dexterously on overlarge feet. For a moment Max was frozen by the sight of such a large rodent. The rat noticed the hesitation and tried to take a bite out of Max's leg. Max darted back, bringing his wrench down on the animals head. Rather than being knocked cold like a human, the rat reared back snarling, trying to rub the blood out of it's face. Max, taken aback that the rat was still moving, stepped forward to attack again. As soon as he was in range, the rat spun round. It's tail was wrapped around a small log, which crashed into the back of Max's ankles, knocking him to the floor. The rat quickly stood over the boy and prepared to come down on his head. But Max had a trick up his sleeve.

Before the rat could kill it's prey, the prey sat up, jammed it's Classic Gun against the rat's chest and pulled the trigger.

The creature fell, fur burning where the point blank shots had set fire to it, wounds pumping blood.

As Max stood up and looked at his dead foe, he noticed it had a circular valve handle hanging from it's paw. The handle to open the door to the next level.

"That wasn't so hard." Max grinned shakily as he took the handle from the dead rat.

* * *

x

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_**Well, I didn't original intend to make this chapter into parts, but it was just so big. There will be two more parts before we move onto chapter two. Hope your enjoying this. Please review**_


	4. Journey to the Outside pt 2

_**Part 2 of chapter 1. Only one more part to go, so hang in their my devoted fanfic fanatics**_

**Dark Chronicle**

**Chapter One: Journey to the Outside**

**Part 2- The Sound of the Underground**

* * *

**I pressed on deeper into the underground channel. I had said to Donny I wanted to see the outside world, but there was a second reason I wanted to leave the town. Something I needed to know that father wouldn't tell me.**

**Two weeks ago we'd been sitting down to dinner, and I'd planned ask him again.**

**"Father," I said "I'd like to ask you something."**

**"Yes, what is it?" he said in his clear, deep voice.**

**"About Mother. Where is she?"**

**As always, this question caused my famously 'cool and level-headed' Father to pause, almost as though he felt uncertain.**

**"I'm sure we discussed this before. You Mother is doing important work, far away from here."**

**I knew that answer well. And as always I pressed him.**

**"But what's the name of the town? And what job's she doing?"**

**"It's nothing for you to worry about." he said, his voice threatening anger (a pretty scary thing when it came from him). "Eat your dinner."**

**I'd had this many times before. This time I lost my temper.**

**"This is how you always are. You don't tell me anything." I shouted before running out the room.**

**I stopped outside and listened, expecting to hear father ordering Stewart the butler to bring me back in, then making me apologise for being so rude. But this time he didn't. When Stewart asked if he should go after me, Father just said "Leave him be."**

**It seemed my Father understood how I felt about not knowing you Mother. But for some reason he wouldn't explain to me. And no one else seemed to know anything about 'The Lady Elaine'. I couldn't even remember your face, even though I must have seen it so often when I was small. The real reason I wanted to leave the town was because I hoped I might find you. **

**

* * *

**

Max didn't know how many hours he'd been in the channel. A giant frog creature had eaten his watch on the second floor.

Max entered a large room. In each corner of the room there were three huge pumps. He stood on a platform overlooking the rusty cavern. In the left wall there was a wide, black tunnel. A door like all the others Max had used was thirty metres dead ahead. On the roof was another huge black hole.

"Donny," Max said into his radio as he headed down a ramp into the wide, empty area. "I'm in a room with loads of pumps."

"Ah," said the radio in Donny's voice "that will be the pump room."

Well 'duh'!

"The exit doesn't lock so you don't need to hang around."

Max turned off the radio and went to cross the room. After two steps he stopped and looked around, a feeling of unfounded foreboding filling him. It was a good thing it did because something huge fell from the hole in the ceiling and landed just where he would be standing if it hadn't.

Linda the show elephant reared up before a horrified Max. She bellowed angrily as another figure floated down and hovered above her.

"And how are we today, MAX!" Flotsam yelled with venom. "I'm quite proud you for coming all this way through the sewers you know!"

He laughed while Max looked daggers at him.

"By the way Max, I took the liberty of doing a little research on you. Tell me, for someone like you, living in a big house, no wants or needs; don't you think it would be a waste if you threw your life away fighting us?"

Flotsam looked at his feet and made mock crying noises.

"And just think how sad your poor, sweet mother would be."

Max was surprised.

"What? What do you know about my mother?" he demanded.

"What if I did know something? If you want to know more, give me that red stone. I've got plenty to tell you."

For a moment Max actually considered the offer, thoughts of his mother clouding his judgement. Flotsam grinned eagerly as they both looked at the necklace. But Max now realised there was something important about the stone, and wasn't prepared to give it up in return for the words of a mad man.

"NO! NO WAY" he shouted at Flotsam. "I'll find my mother by myself. I don't need help from anyone like you."

"You stinking rat! You'll regret this, I guarantee." Flotsam roared "TAKE CARE OF HIM LINDA!"

The terrible creature began stomping forward and Max's bravado took a dive. He began firing his gun, but the bullets only made scratches, and Linda kept swaying her head so Max couldn't aim at her eyes. As Linda continued her slow and steady march, Max stopped firing and brandished his wrench. When Linda was right in front of Max, he dived, wrench raised, and swung with all his might, only to be knocked back by the elephant's trunk.

Max quickly sat up. Linda raised her head, ready to strike with her deadly tusks

There was a great crash, but it wasn't Linda smashing Max into the floor. It was a boulder smashing into Linda's right flank.

Max, Flotsam and Linda looked towards the hole in the left wall.

In the mouth of the tunnel was an incredible contraption that had thrown the boulder. Its barrel shaped bronze body was as tall as Linda and at least half her length. One rubber coated arm had a large grasping claw for a hand; the other had a cannonball for a fist. The comically disproportionately small feet had spurs, and two bright headlights shone from it's upper body like eyes. On top sat Cedric.

"CEDRIC!" Max yelled, both astonished and joyful. "You finally finished the Ridepod!"

"Yep, I named him Steve. I'm still workin' out the bugs, but it's got plenty of punch. Watch this!"

With that, 'Steve' jumped from the tunnel mouth, landed right between Max and Linda, and began spinning its arms to give Linda a collection of devastating uppercuts. A bloody faced Linda quickly fell to the ground.

"Awesome!" Max cheered.

"Ohhhhh!" Flotsam moaned in despair. "My sweet Linda couldn't compete this one."

He waved his hand in the air and blue sparks floated and evaporated from his palm. The next moment, the same sparks began to rise from underneath Linda, lifting her back on her wide feet and repairing her injuries. Max involuntarily cringed at the sight of Flotsam being able to use such powerful healing magic. If Cedric felt the same, he didn't show it.

"Oh, so you want some more huh?" Cedric challenged as the cannonball arm began to spin again. "Take THIS!"

At that moment he shouted, the arm froze. Everyone waited, expecting something amazing to happen. But it didn't.

"What's wrong Cedric?" Max asked after a few tense seconds.

"Hmm," Cedric looked at him. "Actually I didn't finish the energy pack for Steve."

"Linda, Get them!" Flotsam screamed. As the elephant roared, Cedric looked back and yelled "Hop in Max. There's enough juice to get us out of here."

'Steve' hopped backwards to avoid the swinging trunk. Max quickly climbed aboard and the machine made another massive jump to escape the charging elephant.

"ADIOS!" Cedric called as they escaped down the tunnel.

"Oh, they ran. What poor sports!" Flotsam jeered after them while Linda roared.

* * *

The next morning, Max had a quick shower and a bite to eat before he went to join Cedric down in the maintenance shop.

The tunnel they'd escaped down turned out to be a maze of valves and pipes which Cedric had a map to, and after ten minutes of dark passageways they came to a door leading into Cedric's shop (Cedric explained that the door was in case anything in the water channel needed maintenance).

In the shop, Cedric was looking over the Ridepod, but he stopped when Max came in.

"Morning sonny, sleep well?" he asked.

"Yeah," Max replied vaguely. "Why do you think those circus goons are after me Cedric?"

"Who knows kid, but if what you heard at the circus is right, then Mayor Need defiantly knows something. Whatever you do, don't let that pendent fall into their hands, no matter what." Cedric knew Max well enough to see through his story of ignorance so Max had told him everything.

"Ever since last night, no one's been sure what's goin' on. The circus just packed up and left real fast after you went missing. The sheriff tried to investigate but they just cleared out before he could do anything. But people are reporting seeing them in the town, and the rest of them are probably waiting just outside the town gates since you're the one they're after." Cedric's looked depressed. "Looks like your best chance is to get out of town through the water channel, and for that you need to help me fix up Steve so we can take care of that pesky elephant."

"How's father?" Max asked.

"I went over to tell him what happened as soon as I heard." Cedric replied. "He wasn't mad or anything; in fact he seemed kind of upset. Guess he knows you're gonna have to get out of town. He said to tell you good luck and be careful, that was it."

Max was uncertain how to feel about his father's attitude, so he said nothing.

"Well then," Cedric looked back at the Ridepod "maybe you could see about helping me make an energy pack for 'Steve'."

* * *

After about two hours, an energy pack improvised from some old pipes and milkcans was made for 'Steve' (mainly by Max, his speciality being able to make complex machines from junk).

"Okay Max," Cedric said as he opened the maintenance door "just follow the map in the cockpit and you'll get back to the pump room. You'll be heading out on your own son"

"What about you?" Max asked as he climbed on top of the Ridepod.

"I'm gonna see if I can get somethin' out of Need. Him and I go way back. If I can I'll see if I can meet up with you outside the town. Keep your guard up."

"Leave it to me, and thanks Cedric" Max said sincerely to his old friend, before he headed off into the tunnel.

* * *

Max was soon in the pump room again. He stopped the Ridepod and looked for the elephant. He didn't have long to wait.

Once again Linda dropped from above with an almighty crash while Flotsam floated above.

"Ha! Bet you were thrilled when you thought you were alone here. Too bad, soooooo sad." he gloated. "Tear them to pieces, my little Linda."

Linda charged. So did the Ridepod. They met each other half way and ivory tusk met steel arm. They both grappled for a moment, till Linda's greater weight forced 'Steve' to nearly topple backwards. While Max strained to keep the Ridepod on its feet, Linda's trunk struck like a two tonne whip and dented its body. Max tried to jump back to recover, but Linda charged after him, ramming her tusks forward. The deadly spikes cut though the Ridepods body like a red hot poker through butter. 'Steve's' grasping arm came down and grabbed one of the tusks while the fist _whumped_ into the side of the elephants face. Linda lifted the machine and it's driver into the air, preparing to throw them both into the wall. Max jerked the controls frantically, and there was a loud crack.

Linda paused for a moment while Max lifted 'Steve's' arm into the air. One of Linda's tusks had snapped off.

Before the elephant could recover, 'Steve's' arm swung round and jammed the tusk in the top of her head.

Linda dropped 'Steve' and staggered back. With a pathetic moan, she fell to her side and went still.

"OH!" Flotsam's shriek broke the silence. "MY LINDA! YOU LITTLE BRAT! I WON'T FORGET THIS!"

Flotsam then zoomed around the room and shot up through the hole in the roof. Max jumped off 'Steve', quickly glaring at the hole where Flotsam escaped, then looked at the Ridepod.

It was completely write-off. Max felt ashamed as he gazed at the masterpiece he'd managed to destroy in ten minutes. Even worse, Max didn't have a hope of repairing it with the tools he had. He'd need Cedric and some special equipment to get it working, and since neither of those things were here...

Max laid his hand on the Ridepod's shell, wishing he could take it with him rather than abandon it there. He imagined what Cedric would say; how he'd react when he found out his greatest creation had been left for 'dead'.

As Max looked on he thought he saw a flash of light out the corner of his eye. He looked around but could see nothing. He turned back to the Ridepod, but to his horror it had vanished without a trace. Max stared, unable to comprehend what had happened, until he came to the only possible conclusion. Flotsam had stolen the Ridepod with his magic. Max groaned at the thought of what Cedric would say when he heard that 'Steve' had been stolen.

Realising the potential danger he was in, he headed for the exit in case Flotsam had more magic He moved so quickly he didn't notice the yellow letters moving lazily across the surface of his red stone pendent.

_'Ridepod'._

* * *

Mayor Need sat with head in hands. There was nothing he could do. He could only think about Max caught up in this mess. Of all the things Flotsam had done, this was the worst. Threats and injuries, Need could take, but trying to kill a young boy like Max...despicable!

And yet he could still do nothing; except hope that Max suffered a quick death rather than being taken to...him...

The door opened. Need jumped up, anticipating Flotsam's return or news of Max's fate, but it turned out to be Cedric.

The mayor sat down again, trying to hide his relief.

"Cedric, what a nice surprise." Need smiled at his old friend. "What brings you to this part of town?"

Without replying, Cedric walked up to the desk and slammed his fist down hard, making the Mayor jump.

"Alright Need," Cedric growled "what exactly are you hiding from us? Tell me everything, now!"

Need stood up again

"So, you've realised have you?" he sighed. Cedric stayed quite. The answer was obvious. "Damn. Well, sometimes it's better not to know." Need said weakly.

"Why are you hiding things from me Need?" Cedric demanded. "I thought we were friends."

That was all it took for Need to crack. The thought of losing a close friend when he most needed him.

"Alright, I'll tell you. I can't keep it in anymore. I'll tell you what's going on in this town; in this world." he sat down for a second time and then began his unbelievable story.

* * *

Max began to feel hopeful when saw a chest ahead of him. He'd only managed to get one level away from the pump room, because the next level was much larger. Apparently he was getting near the end of the channel, because more pipes were needed, but that meant it was much harder to find his way out. With any luck, however, the treasure chest before him would contain the floor map, allowing Max to find his way out.

He looked around. No monsters. With no reason to show caution, Max strolled forward and opened the chest. There was nothing in it.

Max was completely confused. Why would anyone leave an empty chest this deep in the channel? Max had found all sorts of things in the chests down there, from miscellaneous items stored away for safe keeping to emergency supplies of food and water in air-tight containers. In one chest he'd even found parts to an old drill which he'd screwed onto his wrench so that the sharp head would make it more effective (he named it a drill wrench). But this chest was empty and appeared to have a spongy red filling. Max reached out to feel the unknown substance, wondering if it was some sort of cushion.

The lid slammed down on Max's hand. He yelped and tried to pull back, but suddenly sharp triangular objects grew from the edges of the chest's opening, digging into Max's hand and holding him in place. Panicking, Max tried to force the lid open but it was stuck fast. A single massive eye opened in the centre of the lid. Max froze and stared in horror as even more teeth grew from the edge of the lid and the chest handles extended into spindly arms. Max had never seen such a monster, but he new what it was. Only one monster could ever match such a description.

A Mimic.

The creature bounced of the floor and pulled to it's right, dragging Max down. Before the boy could recover, the Mimic opened it's mouth and the spongy interior rolled out, revealing itself to be a slimy tongue. Max tried to stand, but the Mimic's fleshy appendage wrapped around his throat and began to throttle him. Max gagged and hacked, trying to free himself, but the Mimic's hands reached out and held Max by the wrists. Max strained but the Mimic's grip was like iron. The smell of halitosis from the monster's gaping mouth was so overpowering Max nearly passed out. The slippery tongue slid round its victim's neck, squeezing harder.

Max's tongue was hanging out, his eyes bulging painful in his head. His face began turning blue while his body shuddered involuntarily from lack of air. Then began to feel detached from his body, as though he was observing rather than feeling his pain. His vision began to cloud over and the blood pounding in his ears began to quiten.

_'Oh God,'_ he thought vaguely _'I'm dying.'_

Max gave up his struggle and went limp in the Mimic's grip, head hanging down.

In Palm Brinks, it is popular belief that one of the Mimic's most unusual traits is it's particular tastes in it's food. Many stories suggest that Mimic's dissect their food, only eating specific parts, being unable to stand the others. As a poet once said _'The deceptive treasure only desires treasured morsels'._ Though the theory had never been proven, the stories were actually true, a fact which saved Max's life.

As Max's head fell forward, his tongue came into contact with Mimic's. The taste was a combination of sickly sweetness and raw meat, so strong that Max jerked back to consciousness.

How it must have tasted for the Mimic, Max didn't know. All he knew was at the same moment he was revived, the Mimic screeched and released him, before grabbing it's tongue and making wild gasping noises.

Upon seeing his stricken attacker, Max jumped up and sent an angry, adrenaline fuelled blow at the Mimic's eye with the drill wrench. The monster screamed and the drill head penetrated it's single eyeball, blinding it. It lashed out wildly with it's arms, but Max sent another blow, so strong it knocked the creatures head/ lid clean off.

Max smiled in a dazed way.

"I'm alive, I did it." he muttered hoarsely, before bending at the waist and vomiting all over his shoes.

When he'd finished venting his shock (and breakfast) he assessed himself.

He was a mess. He was covered head to foot in dirt, slime and blood, his body was peppered with small wounds, his throat burned with unbelievable agony and he seemed to have developed a nervous twitch in both his hands. Max allowed a single tear born of shock, fear, pain and self pity to trail down his face before he pulled himself together and staggered off further into the channel.

* * *

"And...that's all there really is to know." Need finished. He'd told Cedric everything, and was surprised to find he felt a bit better. He still felt helpless, but he didn't feel mad with terror anymore. He felt partially grateful to Cedric for raising his burden, but he new better than to bother saying so to his sceptical friend.

"That's what this is all about. You expect me to believe all that?" Cedric asked in disbelief.

"Well, it's the truth, like it or not."

Cedric frowned. Despite how bizarre Need's story was, it fitted in with everything else.

"Just what do you plan on doing, huh?"

"Well, there's nothing that I can do."

"You ignoramus! What's wrong with you? You supposed to be the mayor of this town."

"You're right," Need sighed, looking at his feet "I'm useless as mayor."

"What's the matter with you Need?" Cedric shook his head in disgust. "Your supposed to look after the people of this to-" Cedric stopped abruptly. Need looked at him.

"Of course!" Cedric shouted. "Need, you gotta start up Blackstone railroad again. You shut it down so people wouldn't see the outside world right? But people have gotta leave the town and see the outside world. That way we may have a chance."

Cedric went on to explain his plan to Need. At first the idea of letting people discover what had happened was horrifying, but as Cedric talked the Mayor slowly began to understand Cedric's way of thinking, until finally he was convinced.

"Right!" he said "Let's reopen the railroad."

* * *

The large door creaked open. Max looked around cautiously. The room was huge, the roof so high it disappeared into the shadows. Fat pipes criss-crossed each other in the space between the unseen roof and a scaffolding bridge built seventy feet above the floor. Instead of the damp mouldy stone walls of the channel, the walls were metal and rusty. On the opposite side of the room was a short staircase leading up to a heavy metal door, and on Max's side was a sign saying _'River Drainage'_.

"At last," Max whispered roughly with his probably permanently damaged throat. He moved into the room, believing he'd finally found the exit to the channel. He didn't believe anything could stop him now. He was in for a disappointment.

"THERE HE IS!" a familiar voice cried from above.

Max looked up in time to see Flotsam dive from the bridge and freefall till he stopped and magically hovered some way above Max. Something else followed and landed with a massive crash.

Halloween reared up to it's full monstrous height, green showlights pulsating in anticipation. The clockwork key in the head automatically winded itself in preparation. The huge clown face seemed to mock the young boy with it's grin.

"Now, why don't be a good boy and hand me that red stone. Otherwise, you'll make mister Flotsam very, very angry." Flotsam said in a whiny, baby voice. "So angry, he might even... KILL YOU!"

"Don't you get it," Max tried to sound confident, even with his strangled voice "I'm not giving this stone up."

Flotsam took a moment to decide if he should get mad at Max's defiance or to laugh at his injury. In the end, he settled with "Halloween, kill him."

Halloween lifted it's cumbersome arm and took a massive swipe at Max, who rolled under it and stood up firing. The bullets from the Classic Gun did no damage, but confused the machine by hitting it's eyes, forcing it to leap to the side of the room. Max ran as fast as he could, heading for the door on the other side, but Flotsam landed in front of it and twirled his cane menacingly. Max froze in indecision, like a rabbit caught in headlights. There was a whooshing sound from Halloween's direction and Max looked round to see two jet black missiles streaking towards him. He darted back a step from surprise, and by shear luck the missiles flew either side of Max.

He ran, stumbling from the concussive blast behind him, heading for the other door. Another massive jump from Halloween put it right in Max's path. Then its head twisted upwards and it's nose fired off into the air. It landed in front of Max. Max, having accepted that things no longer made sense, ran from the nose.

As the nose exploded, another slid into place on Halloween's face, and it jumped again so that it landed in the centre of the room, a few feet from Max. Another nose bomb bounced forward as Max put a fresh ammo clip in his gun. The boy quickly abandoned his gun as the bomb landed nearly on top of him. The first nose had been the size of horse, but the new one was only the size of a bowling ball. In desperation, Max seized the bomb and hefted it back at his attacker. The bomb landed and exploded straight into the hole that supplied the spare noses. Halloween shuddered and collapsed as it tried to cope with the damage. Seeing his opportunity, Max darted forward and looked in the hole for some wires to cut or a bolt to loosen. There was none.

Max was about to jump back and prepare to fight again when he noticed the next bomb for Halloween's face half an arms reach into the hole. Quickly having another idea, Max struck the bomb with his wrench and ran from the recovering machine.

Halloween soon recovered and lumbered to it's feet. It raised a hand to attack while the next exploding nose slotted into place. Silently praying he'd broken the seal on the bomb, Max pulled the trigger on his gun as fast as he could.

The unstable bomb quickly detonated under the volley of gunfire from Max, ripping into Halloween's head, frying the brain and shattering the sensors. Flotsam's 'Ultimate entertainment machine' fell to the ground as a crippled wreck that even Max couldn't repair.

"OHHHHHHH! MY POOR LITTLE HALLOWEEN!" Flotsam was practically in tears. He flew to the colossal clown face screaming "It's okay, you can still move!"

That's when the rest of the spare nose bombs decided to blow.

Though Max was at the opposite end of the chamber by now, he was still knocked back by the explosion. Flotsam was hurled savagely into a wall.

When the smoke cleared, Max saw that Flotsam was now lying face down on the dirty floor. He cautiously approached the clown, hoping he was already dead. In spite of all the ringmaster had done, Max didn't want to kill a person, even a person like Flotsam. Yet if he was still alive, he could come after Max again.

He carefully approached the body. It stayed perfectly still. Max reached out a tentative hand to feel for a pulse.

There was a yelp. Max looked round and saw two clowns running towards him. He ran too. He headed for the door leading to the river. When he reached the door he glanced back, but was relived to see the clowns were carrying Flotsam's body away rather than chasing him. Not taking any chances, Max quickly slipped through the door and wedged a spanner through the handles. Without looking back, he headed down the tunnel he was in towards a faint light in the distance.

_**

* * *

**_

At last, part two is done. I hope any Max haters reading this story (I know you're out their) enjoyed this Max bashing chapter, but I'm afraid I'm going to give him a break for a while.

_**Please leave a review (thank you Meg and Freaky Wannabe for not letting me down once so far)**_


	5. Journey to the Outside pt 3

_**Last part, here we go!**_

**Dark Chronicle**

**Chapter One: Journey to the Outside**

**Part 3- The Sword and the Stone**

As Max walked the light grew stronger. He new what it must be, but he still couldn't believe he'd made it. The more he walked the stronger the light got, to the point he had to stop and cover his eyes. When his eyes had adjusted to the light he squinted around.

The tunnel opened onto a ledge jutting out of a cliff face. Below and to the right was a large railroad bridge that was used by the mine when the town used to export. To the left there was a railroad bridge almost on level with Max's ledge, with a stairway connecting them. Both railroads led into tunnels in the opposite cliff face.

Max looked around smiling. He couldn't believe it. Unable to stop himself, he raised his arms in the air and yelled "YAAAAAAAHOOOOOO!" at the top of his voice. He was finally outside the town.

He ran down the steps to the railroad, excitement overtaking fatigue. He skidded to a halt part way along the bridge and looked about, and saw something which replaced his excitement with awe.

* * *

**That was the first time I'd seen it. The sky that reached so far and so high. The most beautiful thing I'd ever seen.**

* * *

Max was overcome by the sight of the horizon. It was just past midday and there wasn't a cloud in the sky, so Max could see all the way to the distant mountains that made the jagged skyline. It was the most awesome thing he'd ever seen in his life living in Palm Brinks.

He was so enthralled by the sight he practically fell over in surprise when a loud horn sounded from the railroad tunnel in the cliff face he'd just come from.

A large steam engine with red and yellow paint on the front and sides pulled out of the tunnel with three carriages in tow. It rolled up next to the platform Max stood on and steam hissed viciously from its chimney. Max was again speechless as he stared at Blackstone One in all its glory. The steam powered sleeper train came to a gentle halt, and as if to answer Max's unasked questions, the door the engine opened and out stepped...

"Cedric!" Max called out in pleased surprise before grabbing at his throat in pain.

"What d'ya think?" Cedric called back. "Blackstone One is up and running again. We're gonna see the world on this baby. Now hop in; I gotta tell you what I found out from Need."

Max jogged over to the engine and climbed aboard. He was met by Borneo and Erik, the original engine driver and coalman of Blackstone One, who started working in the mine when it shut down.

Once they were all aboard the horn sounded again and Blackstone One pulled out of the station.

* * *

After Max had quickly gone through what had happened in the channel (thankful that his injuries pacified Cedric's anger when he'd found out about the lost Ridepod) Cedric told Max what the Mayor had been hiding.

"Need's story was pretty far-fetched, but it seems to match up with everything else." he began.

* * *

**You don't really need this letter to tell you this, do you Mother?**

**Ten years ago, the entire world was laid to waste. In just one day, everyone and everything was destroyed. The name of the enemy... Emperor Griffin. Griffin spared the town of Palm Brinks because he wanted a red stone that he believed was hidden there. That's right, the stone around my neck. Griffin used his henchman Flotsam to threaten the mayor and make him look for the stone.**

**The mayor's story seemed unbelievable, but like Cedric said it fitted in with everything else. Cedric had talked with the mayor and they decided the best chance was to let people out of the overcrowded Palm Brinks so they could rebuild towns elsewhere. That way people would hopefully be safe as Flotsam and Griffin wouldn't be sure where to find the stone, preventing their plans to apparently destroy the world. It was risky, but it was the only thing we could do.**

**So what was the meaning of all this? The mysterious overlord, Emperor Griffin, the red stone that everyone was after. I had no idea that the adventure I was about to begin would lead to the answers I was looking for, and that those answers would be more amazing than I could ever believe possible.**

* * *

Suddenly a massive crash sounded from outside. The people in the engine looked around in confusion as what sounded like gunfire followed the crash.

"What's that! It's coming from outside!" Erik yelled.

"Cedric, Max. Find out what that is." Borneo added.

Max moved to the door leading to the first carriage but Cedric caught his arm.

"Let's head up to the roof sonny." he said, gesturing to a nearby ladder "Might give us a better view."

They quickly climbed up the ladder and onto the roof.

* * *

The sight they saw was not pleasant.

The train had long since left the tunnel and was zooming through a dense wood. There were large open paths running parallel either side of the railroad, each big enough for a large car to drive along.

And a large car was the very thing coming up on the left side of Blackstone One.

To be exact it was an All Terrain Vehicle, the large robotic hands extending from the bumper giving it away. Crammed into the drivers seat was the strong man from Flotsam's circus. Standing on the rear platform was Flotsam himself with a tripod mounted heavy machine gun.

Flotsam howled with laughter while he adjusted his new mirrored sunglasses, before firing another volley of armor piecing bullets at the train.

"Him again? It's like he's stuck to my boot." Max mumbled.

"Flotsam!" Cedric exclaimed as he joined Max. "I swear that man's possessed by the dark elements. If we don't stop him he'll wreck this whole train."

"What do we do?" Max tried and failed to speak clearly.

Cedric jumped down to the door leading back into the engine. Before Max could follow he returned with a football sized jet black sphere.

"Here, toss this bomb while I grab another." said Cedric.

Max gaped at the bomb as though it had tried to bite him.

"Throw this? I'm not sur-" Max was interrupted by more gunfire and a crash as one of the ATV's arms punched the side of a carriage. Max quickly reconsidered.

"Okay, I'll try." he said uncertainly as he reached for the bomb.

* * *

Flotsam couldn't believe his luck. When he'd recovered the clowns had told him Max had escaped the water channel and he assumed he'd never have another chance of catching the boy. He'd just resigned himself to the idea that Griffin would soon swoop down and eat him alive for his failure when the railroad had started up again. Could they have been any more obvious? And now there was nothing they could do to escape.

He prepared to fire at the train again, but he spotted something out the corner of his eye. Looking at it, he saw it was a round, black object. A boulder maybe. So they were going try throwing rocks at him were they?

Flotsam laughed out loud as the rock hit the ground several yards ahead of them, then he yelled and almost fell from the ATV as the 'rock' turned into a gout of fire that they narrowly missed driving through.

"WATCH OUT FOR THOSE BOMBS!" Flotsam yelled at the driver, who grunted stupidly in response. A few seconds later another bomb exploded and a large scab of metal was blown from the side of the car.

"ARE YOU DEAF YOU BLOATED BAFOON? USE THE JUMP!" Flotsam yelled again.

The circus strongman activated the necessary control and the ATV's arms slammed down, propelling the car over yet another bomb and sending it flying over the train and onto the path on the other side of the railroad. Flotsam quickly aimed and his heavy machine gun began spitting flames again. While he fired, he reached out with a free hand to make sure his emergency plan was ready to use. He was going to make sure the Atlamillia didn't escape at any cost.

* * *

Max had to double take when he saw the car jump over the train. He'd once seen an ATV but he'd never heard of one that could jump. Cedric had obviously never seen anything like it either, because he exclaimed "Hot diggerty! You see that? It jumped the darn train! If only I could make something like that."

Max gave Cedric a withering glare. He quickly got the message and passed another bomb.

The next bomb landed some way ahead of the car, but the resulting flames badly burned the car and singed the driver, almost making them crash. Unfortunately the arms steadied the car before that could happen.

Max lifted another bomb over his head and prepared to throw. He watched carefully, trying to ignore the gunfire and aim, but the arms at the front of the car rose to make another jump. Max threw the bomb as hard as he could onto the other path, just as the car leapt over the train.

By a one hundred to one chance, Flotsam's car landed right on top of the bomb. The car was moving fast, but not fast enough to escape the explosion before it ripped into the huge exhaust pipes at the ATV's rear. Flotsam squealed and fell forward on his machine gun as flames licked at his feet.

"Agggh! It's on fire! Do something you worthless lump!" Flotsam shouted at the strong man. The strong man's response was to jump out the car and escape just before the fuel tank exploded.

Max watched the car explode, and raised his fist in the air, believing he'd won. But it wasn't as easy as that.

Flotsam rocketed into the air and crashed down on the roof of the first train carriage. Despite his burns and bruises he climbed back to his feet and glared at Max standing at the opposite end of the carriage.

"Whyyyy eyyyy yoraaa!" Flotsam spluttered incomprehensively. He grabbed at his waist and then cast his arms back. His clothes were ripped off and blown away in the wind, and he was left wearing only his purple top hat and a pair of boxer shorts with hearts dotted across them.

It might have looked comical, had the clown not been covered in sticks of dynamite.

Max gasped and took a step back, almost falling on top of Cedric who said unnecessarily "He's gonna blow himself up along with the whole train!"

"Neh, neh, neh-neh, neh." Flotsam taunted as he began walking toward them. "Lob another bomb at me! Come on, DO IT!"

Max drew his wrench as though it might somehow protect him from the walking bomb. Sweat began to prickle on his brow as Flotsam continued to get closer. It seemed like only a miracle could save them. Either that or-

_"Hey mister!"_

Flotsam stopped. Max was startled. They both looked back to the roof of the second carriage.

The red haired kid who stole Max's ticket was there, and he was speaking with a girl's voice again.

"Don't you give up? You're starting to look pretty pathetic." the kid smirked at his own understatement. Flotsam ignored it completely.

"What's this? So you want to die too, eh? Sure, fine, why not?"

Flotsam plucked two dynamite sticks from his belt, lit them with the old magic trick of blowing on the wick and began walking back towards the boy.

"Okay punk, it's time to burn!" Flotsam yelled as he approached.

The boy was not impressed with the attitude. His smirk was replaced by an angry slash.

Then he vanished as he was engulfed in a shimmering yellow light than came from nowhere.

"W-what is this?" Flotsam cried out in confusion.

The light gradually cleared, and in the place where the boy had stood there was a girl, about Max's age, dressed in wide blue shorts and vest. A four foot long ponytail of fire engine red hair tumbled in the air behind her as it was caught by the wind. Her eyes matched her hair colour and seemed to shine with inner strength. In her right hand she held a long sword and on her left upper arm she wore a thick, brown, net like armlet.

And she looked angry.

"It-it's you!" Flotsam gasped at the new comer. "How did you..."

The girl cut him off. Literally. She dived the length of a whole carriage and landed right in front of Flotsam. Her sword darted out too fast to watch, and the heads of the dynamite sticks scattered, making Flotsam harmless again. But she wasn't finished yet.

She jumped again, this time landing behind the circus ringmaster. Before he could turn, the unknown amazon booted Flotsam high into the air. As he spiralled away, the girl raised her arm and balls of fire shot from her leather armlet and chased the airborne clown. The magical blasts lifted Flotsam an extra few metres in the air, before he fell back to earth and tumbled to a halt on the rail road.

He lay still, panting in shock. When he was sure he'd stopped moving, Flotsam raised his head and looked around. The train was long gone.

"Nuts..." he breathed, before falling into a dead faint.

Back on the train Max, Cedric and the unknown girl had climbed down into the engine (after Max and Cedric had stopped gaping in shock).

"Wow..." Cedric shook his head in amazement. "That was... amazing!"

"Thanks," the girl spoke in a cheerful tone "although I'm not as good as that all the time. If it hadn't been for the residual magic from my glamour I probably wouldn't have managed it."

"So, you're a sorceress?" Cedric asked.

"I wouldn't go that far, but yes, I know about magic." she replied

"And you were that kid following me?" Max croaked out.

The girl looked at Max with a combination of surprise and concern when he spoke, causing Max to feel a twinge of embarrassment because of his voice.

"Yes that right." the girl was good enough to try and hide her surprise.

"So...who are you?" asked Erik, who had been ogling the newcomer since she stepped into the engine.

She was about to answer, when the train made a violent jolt. Most of them managed to keep their footing but Max, who was both exhausted and injured, tripped and fell flat on his back. Cedric was quickly at his side, helping him up.

"I think it's time you took a rest Max. You're in a terrible state."

The old man led Max to the door into the first carriage. Max stumbled again, but he felt a hand on his left arm steadying him. He looked, expecting to see Erik or Borneo helping him, but was surprised by the sight of the mysterious girl with a look of extreme concern on her pretty face as she supported Max.

Together, they made their way into the first carriage and allowed Max to collapse on the first seat.

"Hoo wee!" Cedric exclaimed as he looked over the damage to the carriage. "Look at the state this thing's in. Those clowns weren't even aiming at this carriage."

He looked down at Max

"I'm gonna go check on the rest of the train. When I get back we'll try an old recipe to help with yer throat. I think it involves peppermint oil if I can find some." He paused for a moment "Or was it cinnamon?"

Before Max could protest to Cedric's half remembered old recipe, the old mechanic headed off to check the rest of the train, leaving Max alone with the female stranger.

"What exactly happened to you?" she asked.

Max hid a grimace at the thought going over the sewer incident, and tried to gloss over it by saying "Had a fight with a mimic."

"Oh, that must have been so awful for you!" she said with genuine concern. "I've seen mimics before. Horrible creatures. It tried strangling you, right?"

Max nodded, hoping she would drop the subject.

"You poor thing." she said, apparently unaware her comments were unwanted at the moment. "Here, this might help."

She pulled off one of her gloves and wrapped a soft hand round Max's throat. Max was startled, but before he could decide how to react he felt a pleasant warmth in his neck that reached out to the rest of his body.

"What are you doing?" Max asked, and was even more surprised to find his voice wasn't as strained as before.

"I'm using some healing magic on you." she replied. "Normal it's only good for small cuts and sprains, but with the magic left over from the glamour of that kid, I think there's enough to get you fixed up."

"You were following me disguised as that boy?" Max's voice was getting better by the second.

"That's right. I guess I should say sorry for going behind your back and everything, but I had to know if you'd be able to help me."

"Help?" Max asked in surprise.

"Yes. When I saw you had that stone I knew you were my best chance. That's why I stole your ticket at the circus; Firstly to see if you could track me down and catch me, secondly to see if you were decent enough to let me go. You did well, though I wasn't expecting you to give me your ticket. You know that's kind of a stupid thing to do, giving something away to a thief." Max looked down at his feet to hide his embarrassment.

"But it was also really sweet." the girl added. Max looked up and she flashed him a winning smile. Max paused for a moment. Was it his imagination, or did his heart miss a beat when he saw that attractive expression?

"S-so," Max refocused on the conversation "what has his stone got to do with anything?"

"Well..." the girl seemed uncertain for a moment "I think it'd be best to wait till we get to our first destination before I go into that. There's something you need to see first." she brightened up again. "For now, why don't you see if that healing magic's worked?"

Max then realised that all the injuries he'd suffered had gone. His back no longer stung and his cheek didn't feel stiff with dried blood. He felt he neck and found the deep wheals left by the mimics tongue were nonexistent, and on top of that not only was his fatigue and stress of the last few hours gone, but he felt more energetic than he'd ever felt in his life.

He jumped to his feet with the new found energy, beaming with joy at the girl who healed him. For a moment she was startled by Max's reaction, but quickly she found herself smiling back. Max stuttered slightly as he tried to think of something to say. The girl seemed a little lost for words too for a moment, but she managed to ask "So, what'd you say your name was?"

"...Max. Max Zelmite." Max introduced himself, still smiling.

Smiling back, the girl said "Monica. Monica Raybrante."

* * *

**And that was how I met Monica. It seems strange, but I felt a though I'd known her for a long time.**

**Eventually, the train couldn't go any further into the forest, and we had to stop in a place called Sindain, where Monica said she would explain everything to us.**

* * *

X

* * *

_**So now Monica has joined the party, which is good because we all love her.**_

_**Please leave a review and I will continue to update**_


	6. Resurrection of the great elder pt 1

_**Chapter two at last. **_

**Dark Chronicle**

**Chapter 2: Resurrection of the great elder**

**Part 1- If you go down to the woods today, your sure of a BIG surprise**

Blackstone One came to a stop just outside Sindain station. The train had suffered too much damage to make it all the way so the occupants were forced to step out onto a lawn like area instead of tarmac.

"Man, I don't think she can take anymore." Borneo said as he looked at the damaged train. "We're gonna have ter find some spare parts in the old station before we can move on."

"That's fine with me. I've got things to do here." Monica turned and looked towards the forest.

"This place is the spirit forest Sindain," she explained to a nearby Max "but it's different in my time."

* * *

**Monica came from the future; exactly one hundred years in the future. She came to my time because she had something very important to do. You wouldn't believe time travel was possible in the world I lived in, Mother. It seemed totally crazy to me then, but this was only the beginning.**

* * *

"If we could restore the Great Elder's origin point, he could tell us all about Griffin."

"Origin point?" Max questioned.

"Yes. An origin point is where something begins, like..." Monica looked around, then pointed at a flower near her foot "like this flower; the seed has to be planted before it will bloom." she squatted down by the flower and gestured Max to join her, which he did.

"In that way the planted seed is the origin point of the flower, and the flower is the history that springs from the origin point. In the same way everything that happens in the future has it's origin point in the past, but if an origin point is changed the results can be great, or terrible."

Monica stood up, followed by Max who was hanging on her every word.

"That's what Griffin has done. Griffin has sent his power to this time, altering the origin points of my time. In my time this is where the elder of the spirits, Jurak, lived. He was very wise and powerful. His great power purified the forest, and gave vitality to all living things in it. But..." Monica stopped and closed her eyes as though experiencing a bad memory.

Without thinking, Max reached out a comforting hand to lay on the young girl's shoulder, but as his fingertips brushed against her arm, her head whipped round in surprise. They were both frozen for a moment, unsure what to do or say. Max soon pulled hand away rather awkwardly and waited. Monica then blinked and began talking again, vaguely wondering why her confidence to speak about such hard things had returned so suddenly.

"...but he was erased from existence by Griffin. And not only him. All those with the power to challenge Griffin are being erased from existence too. I don't think he'll stop until he's wiped out the entire world. Someone _has _to stop him."

Monica's face looked grim and angry.

"Even now my comrades are fighting Griffin's armies in the future. And Max," Monica turned to look at the young boy "I need you to help us..."

"Huh! Me! You want me to help you in a war?" Max asked in surprise.

"Yes, you have to! You're only one who can do it!" Monica said excitedly, knees slightly bent, arms held out in front of her with her hands balled into fists, her face eager as she waited to see what Max would say.

Max was indecisive for a moment. He already had a lot of problems at the moment, and he was being asked to get involved in a war he didn't understand. Even Monica hadn't been able to tell him what Griffin's motives were.

The thought of Monica caused Max to question his negative thinking. He looked at her, standing before him looking so desperate for his help, which he couldn't help feeling flattered by. Neither could he forget the fact she'd saved his life on the train and saved him from permanent injury without asking for anything in return. With all this in mind, Max's kind nature couldn't bear to stand by while someone needed his help.

"Okay! I'll do it!" Max said, with more enthusiasm than a boy going to war should rightly have.

"All right!" Monica cried, bouncing up and down slightly with glee. "I knew you would! Guess we're a team now, huh?"

She straightened up and thrust out her hand. Without a moment of uncertainty, Max shook Monica's hand and sealed their partnership.

* * *

**And with that, Monica joined my adventure. An adventure to take back the true past; the true history that had been stolen by Emperor Griffin.**

* * *

"Max," the two kids turned to Cedric who had been talking with Borneo and Erik "You better go on ahead; we've gotta try and get this train fixed up."

"And make sure you look out for anything useful you find in the forest." added Borneo. "If you need any help, just come back here and see us. Take care of yourself Max."

"You two little girly-pie." Erik said silkily as he winked at Monica. It was obvious the adolescent coalman was 'interested' in Monica from the looks he'd given her while on the train.

"You bet. Thanks guy's." she waved to them with a slightly forced smile. As soon as they headed towards they train, she turned to Max.

"Okay, let's go." Monica said, glowering slightly from Erik's attempted flirtation. As she headed to the tunnel like opening in the dense forest, Max followed, thinking _'She looks cute when she's angry.'_

* * *

They emerged from the trees into a wide field. The light green plain before them was surrounded by slopes topped with wild tangles of bushes on three sides. The far side had no slope and the trees grew impossibly thick. In the centre of the far side of the clearing was a small pile of boulders from which a spring was steadily dribbling water into a small pond. The area was completely deserted except for a few boulders, some rotten tree stumps... and a single, solitary house.

"Hey, a house all by itself. That's kind of weird." Monica said.

"Let's check it out." Max suggested.

They both walked over to the small, thatched cottage which was almost completely covered in ivy. They could see that it had only been built with wood and turf, but it seemed very sturdy. When they got close there was a surprised yelp from above.

"There's someone there!" Max exclaimed.

Before they could do anything else, a creature jumped off the roof and landed in front of the two kids.

It was the oddest thing they'd ever seen. It was as small as a three year old human, but with a frame as strong and bulky as a weight lifter. It had hands that were bigger than Max and Monica's put together, chestnut brown skin and very thick mud brown hair that covered his eyes, with a thick sideburns and curly moustache. His shirt and hat were made of faded green wool while his trousers were an unknown white material. His hat sat on his head looking like the top half of a pear, complete with a stalk.

"What is it? What do you want?" the creature challenged in a strong Irish accent.

"Hey!" Monica said cheerfully, leaning closer to the thing for a better look "You're one of the Firbits from the tribe of Sindain." Before she could stop herself she grabbed the ends of the creature's moustache and stretched it out. "So cute; all curly and everything."

"HEY! HEY!" the Firbit spluttered as it waved it's arms wildly.

"Yeah, I wanted to ask you for a favour."

"T...t...this is how you ask a favour!"

"Whoops! Sorry." Monica released the moustache which sprang back into place like a spring, knocking the Firbit on his back. He forced himself up again and began growling like a dog.

Monica either didn't notice or didn't care about the Firbit's anger, because she leaned towards him again and asked "Tell me, have you heard of a being named Jurak around here?"

"ARRRRRRRRGH!" the Firbit yelled in frustration, before running up the steps and into the house, slamming the door closed.

"Wow. What was his problem?" Monica looked at Max.

"Beats me." Max replied, hiding a smile at his friend's tone which was so casual he couldn't tell if she was joking or being serious.

They climbed up the three steps to the large oak door which Max knocked on.

"Nobody's home!" came an angry yell.

"What do we do?" Max asked, assuming Monica needed to speak with the Firbit for some reason.

"Well, I've heard that Firbits are just crazy about grape juice," she said, then added in a loud voice "and we bought all this grape juice. Now whatda' we do? If he won't let us in we'll just have to throw it away."

For a moment nothing happened.

Max was about to comment that he didn't think anyone would fall for her trick, when the door opened and a huge hand beckoned them.

Max raised an eyebrow and looked at Monica, who shrugged and said "Most Firbits are either really smart or really stupid." before leading the way into the house.

Inside the house, Max and Monica were surprised to see a tree taking root in the far left corner of the single room. The branches spread across the roof with ripe fruit hanging precariously from them, alongside several hammocks. A sideboard that ran halfway along the right hand wall held a wide assortment of possessions. The only furniture was a wide circular table made from a large tree stump and two low benches which curved round said stump. There were three Firbits in the room; the one they'd met outside, one dressed in orange with slimy looking straight black hair and goatee, and one dressed in maroon with fluffy white hair and glasses.

"Hey, three Firbits." Monica exclaimed as the first Firbit approached them. The green clothed creature held out his massive hand and gestured impatiently.

"Ah, you want the grape juice, huh?" Monica asked. The Firbit nodded. "Well it'll cost you." the Firbit glared at her, but she continued.

"I've heard that you Firbits have a magic power that can be used to create things, like houses and rivers."

"What about it?" the Firbit asked suspiciously.

"I want you to use that power to restore the town of Sindain."

"No way!" the Firbit practically shouted. "It's too much hard work. Besides, we got no time for that, so just run along now will yer?"

"What are you talking about!" Monica practically shouted back. "Hundreds of towns and villages have been wiped out by an evil power from another time. The entire world has become like one huge deserted island. If you don't do something the entire world will be destroyed!"

"Listen here..."

"Hold on there, Racoco."

All three of them looked towards the white bearded Firbit.

"I think I understand what you kids talking about." he spoke in a deep, gruff voice. "Come over here and take seat."

Everyone was quickly introduced (the greasy haired Firbit was Tollbo, while the elderly one was chief Conda, and both had strong Irish accents) and Monica lost no time in explaining the destruction of the world again, and said she wanted the Firbits to use there creation magic to restore the town of Sindain.

"I see." said Conda, adjusting his glasses "I was still wondering what had happened to the town that used to be here. We just came here one day and everything was gone. But to be honest, we're in a bit of a fix ourselves. Even if we wanted to we can't help till we deal with our own problems"

"What problems?" Max and Monica asked simultaneously.

"Well, it was about a year ago when this beautiful human woman wandered into the forest. We've always viewed humans as crafty, cunning creatures, so we approached her with caution. But this human was different; had a soul that was more beautiful than words can describe. Said her name was Holly. Had a feeling it wasn't her real name, but that didn't matter a bit. She became such an integral part of our lives; it was as though she'd woven a spell over us. And then one day she went into the woods to look for food, and she never came back. The best four of us formed a search party and set out to find her. I was sure I'd picked the most able bodied of our tribe, but they turned out to be a bunch of goofs. We've been waiting for days and there's been no sign."

"Wow," said Monica "that's quite a story."

"I'd love to help yer out," continued Conda "but to work our creation magic it needs all seven of us. And besides, we're not really in the helping mood yer understand."

Conda then looked over at them, eyes trailing over Monica's sword and Max's gun.

"Listen here, I have a proposition for you."

"Let me guess," said Monica "you want us to go into the woods and find your friends? And then you can use your magic?"

"Yes, that's right. But could you also look out for Holly? Each day without her brings nothing but sadness."

"Sure; four or five, what's the difference?" Monica agreed. "So, what does this Holly look like? Anything distinctive about her?"

"Errr, let me think now. There must have been something." Conda strained his memory. "Ah! Her hair! It was long... wait, maybe it was short." he strained his brain again before crying triumphantly "Yes! She made the most wonderful potato pies!"

"That's right. They were mighty tasty." said Tollbo

Monica sighed

"Forget it..."

Max barely noticed Monica speaking; his thoughts were occupied with what Conda had just said.

* * *

**Potato pies. That reminded me of the potato pies you made for me when I was a kid. I used to say they were the best potato pies in the whole world. Could it be that the woman called Holly was actually you Mother? Just thinking that made my heart beat faster.**

* * *

A few minutes later Max, Monica and Conda were back out in the green next to the railroad. Conda had led the pair to a trio of giant flowers blocking a gap in the trees.

"Just though these flowers is the entrance to Rainbow Butterfly Wood. Lately the monsters in the forest have gotten worked up by something, probably the power of this Griffin fellow you've been talking about, so watch yerselves now." Conda said.

He pointed his cane at the largest of the flowers which quickly vanished in a shower of sparks.

"Legend has it that in these woods is a mysterious rainbow coloured butterfly; and anyone one who lays eyes on that rainbow coloured butterfly never leaves the woods again." Conda explained. "Yer know I wonder if Holly and the search party went and accidentally found themselves that rainbow coloured butterfly. Just be careful not to run into that rainbow coloured butterfly."

"What do you mean? What can we do if we meet it?" Monica asked.

"If that happens..." Conda let his words hang dramatically, before concluding with "just pretend yer didn't see it."

"Wha-?"

"And take this with you." Conda handed Max a wine bottle. "It's the Firbits' favourite thing in the world; grape juice. With this, the others just might smell yer and come runnin'." Conda then began to head to where Sindain town used to be.

"I'll be waiting in the house for yer. I wish yer both good luck."

Conda headed through the 'tunnel' back to the field while Max and Monica went into the woods.

"What do you think of that stuff about the butterfly?" Max asked.

"Well, some monsters do have a natural thrall." said Monica. "Like vampires or incubus' they can attract prey to themselves rather than hunting. But we probably don't have anything to worry about. Monsters like that prefer to be in open air; the trees in this forest are too thick."

Monica looked up at the sky. Max looked too.

There was barely any sky to see. Just a few gaps between the crush of dark brown branches.

Max stopped walking. It suddenly occurred to him how little he'd noticed about Sindain. He'd been so intent on listening to some sort of explanation or story he hadn't realised how different this place was from Palm Brinks. True, the town had some trees in it, but never so many. And never like _this_.

The trees in the forest were at least four times bigger than any he'd ever seen. Max had never even been in a wood in all his life, and it was...unnerving.

"Hey Max, keep up."

Max was transfixed by the way they hung over the path. In the sewers the roof had been made of stone and looked solid and safe, but the trees shifted and waved like huge, dark hands that were itching to reach out and grab him. The small gaps in the thick branches let only thin shafts of light through, as though teasing Max with light they deprived from him.

"Max, what's wrong?"

And he never imagined trees could be so _loud. _The entire wood creaked at the slightest gust of wind, sounding like a crowd of people moaning in pain. Every rustle in the foliage suggested hidden danger.

"Max?"

There were so many shadows in the wood it made the trees look evil, as thou-

"MAX!"

Max finally looked away from the trees and at Monica instead.

"Max, what's wrong? Why do you keep staring at the trees?" Monica asked impatiently.

"I...the..." Max stuttered slightly, then managed to say "I-Is all the wood like this?"

Now Monica was confused

"Probably, what's wrong with it?"

A few beads of sweat broke out across Max's brow as he said "In Palm Brinks, we never had anything, like...this..."

"Oh," Monica suddenly realised what was wrong, and felt a little guilty she didn't think of it before.

Most people would probably considered the wood to be a bit creepy. But to someone like Max, who'd lived all his life in a town and had probably never even seen a wood, it was understandable that he should be scared of something she herself would describe as 'a bit creepy'.

"Max," Monica said gently "You've never seen a wood before, right?"

Max didn't meet her eye as he nodded, apparently being ashamed of his fear. Monica quickly tried to boost his confidence by saying "It's all right Max. Guess it's hard coping with all this after living in Palm Brinks all your life."

Max didn't respond.

"Max, I know all of this is a lot to take in. Why don't wait with the train while I go on ahead?"

"No," Max quickly replied "I'll come, it's just..." Max looked at the path before them which stretched out like the gullet of some malicious, green and brown skinned beast.

Monica moved next to Max and tentatively placed a hand on his shoulder. He tensed slightly at her touch, but then relaxed considerably.

"Listen Max," Monica said soothingly "I'm sorry I didn't think about how all this would affect you before, but I promise that there's nothing about this wood for you to be afraid of. The only thing we have to worry about is the monsters, and I know you won't have a problem with them." Max seemed a little better after this, but still a little worried, so Monica added "And I'll stick with you all the way."

Max turned to look at Monica, and she was glad to see the fear had left his eyes. As she looked, she noticed just how nice his eyes looked. Sapphire blue, the sort of blue only found in the purest of diamonds. They were the sort of eyes she could probably stare at for hours, in spite of the niggling feeling that they looked somehow familiar.

"Thank you."

Monica did a double take when Max broke her concentration.

"What?"

"I was worried you might not think I was good enough to help you." Max smiled "Thanks for talking me round."

Monica smiled back.

"Hey, no problem."

The two kids set off into the wood, ready to begin their adventure, together.

* * *

X

_**

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**_

Another chapter updated

_**Any comments on the sub chapter titles?**_


	7. Resurrection of the great elder pt 2

_**Chapter two, part two. Slightly slow chapter, but in involves the fish lol**_

**Dark Chronicle**

**Chapter 2: Resurrection of the great elder**

**Part 2- Big Fish**

The wood turned out to be more than just a bit creepy. There were twisting paths marked out by viciously sharp brambles and small rivers snaking straight though the forest, which were too deep to cross and too wide to jump. Fortunately, the woods were home to a large population of fairies who had various items stored in treasure chests in the wood, including enchanted saws that could cut down trees in an instant to make bridges. Unfortunately, the fairy population didn't take kindly to humans stealing there possessions. Max and Monica were constantly ambushed by crow sized imps who threw fireballs at them, and harassed by insect sized sprites who kept dive-bombing their heads.

And the monsters in the wood were horrendous. Man eating plants nearly uprooted themselves in an effort to attack the two children, undead skeletons of ancient hunters erupted from the ground at random intervals, and huge wolf like Gyumos stalked them everywhere. At one point, out of the trees had jumped... a tree!. No one had time to appreciate the irony as it tried to eat Max. Monica managed to scare it away by setting fire to it's branches.

As they were walking, they came to a small drawbridge over a particularly wide river.

"Hey, why's this bridge here?" asked Max.

"Maybe this is an important part of the forest," Monica said "but whoever was last to use it has left it up."

The drawbridge had been raised from the opposite side of the river so they couldn't cross _and_ couldn't see what was on the far bank. The trees either side of the bridge were impossibly close together on both river banks, so they couldn't even try cutting one down with a fairy saw; not that they had a fairy saw. For some reason animals and monsters seemed to be scarce in that part of the wood.

"Well what do we do?" Max asked.

"We're gotta cross this bridge. Leave this to me."

Monica ran at a nearby tree and jumped at it. Just as it looked like there'd be some horrible collision, she rammed her feet against the bark and rebounded up towards a strong branch. She grabbed it, and with the skill of an expert gymnast she swung herself round so she was able to jump off the branch and over the river, swinging from an overhanging branch as she did.

She landed on the very tip of the bridge hands first and dropped gracefully out of sight on the opposite bank.

There was a click and the bridge fell at Max's feet, spanning the river.

Monica hopped of the winch handle she'd landed on and walked over to Max, who was staring at her in awe.

"Hey Max, put your eyes back in will ya?" she said, bringing Max back to his senses.

"Err, sorry..." he said

"That's the second time you've stared at me like that. If you keep that up the monsters are going to start thinking your weird." Monica joked.

Max laughed slightly as he looked past Monica. His face fell as he saw how dark and misty it was on the opposite bank.

Monica noticed the change and asked "You doing okay Max?"

Max's face changed to a look of determination.

"I'm fine," he said, leading the way over the bridge.

* * *

**I was still scared Mother. The woods were so different to Palm Brinks that to this day I still cringe when I think about my first time there. But I didn't want to give up.**

**I partly wanted to impress Monica. I felt like an amateur next to her, and I wanted to prove that I could help her in her fight against Griffin, though I never realised what sort tests I would face further in our travels.**

**The main reason I wouldn't give up is because of you Mother. I couldn't be sure, but I had a feeling that your middle name might have been Holly. At that point I was certain that the mysterious woman lost in the forest was you. And if it was, I wanted to be the first person you saw when you were rescued.**

* * *

When the two kids were on the opposite bank, they saw figures dwarfish though the mist.

"There they are!" Monica exclaimed, moving to walk past Max, but he stopped her with his arm.

"Hold on; something doesn't look right."

The Firbits were all sitting around a large, murky pond. All there heads were bowed and three of them were swaying drunkenly. And when they listened carefully, Max and Monica could here quite mutterings filling the air.

"You're right, Max. We better be careful." Monica drew her sword.

They crept past skeletal bushes and sea green tree trunks and tried to speak with the Firbits in turn. The first three just muttered strangely.

"So beautiful here. No way I'm leaving."

"I'll never leave these woods."

"I'm happy here, go away."

The fourth Firbit had a fishing rod hanging from his hand and was snoring loudly. Monica poked him gently with her sword and he jumped awake.

"BLAAA- THE CABBAGE!" he yelled wildly before he began to refocus on reality. He looked up at Max and Monica silhouetted by the light from the open drawbridge, and yelled wildly again.

"ARGH! The monsters have broken in!" he swung his fishing rod round at them.

"Hey- ow!" Monica said as the fish hook caught her ear. "We're not monsters. We were sent by your chief Conda to find you guys."

"Oh, Conda sent yer? Well thank 'eavens for that. I been livin' 'ear wit' that bridge keepin' the monsters out for weeks eatin' raw fish 'n' fairies. Me mates 'ere drank some 'o' that swamp water and 'ave been like this ever since, an' I can't go back on me' own."

"The swamp water made them like this?" Max asked. Thoughout the exchange the other Firbits had done nothing but continue to sway and mutter, as though in a trance.

"Yeah. Not ere' though, over at that huge swamp near the path that goes into the deep woods. That's where that 'orrible monster jumped over a few hours ago an' started moanin' an' that"

"Okay," Monica said "I think we better check this out. Come on Max."

The pair of adventurers walked past the muddy pools and mossy rocks until they came to a swamp wide enough to happily hold four Men of War galleons and still leave room for an olympic championship to take place.

Over to the left was a large pile of boulders blocking a path and a dark tree whose high branches stretched over the swamp. At the base of the tree sat a vast gorilla with horribly swollen apples scattered around it.

"Hey, that's Master Utan, the forest Guardian." Monica explained.

"Is he safe?" Max asked.

"Safe enough." the ape said, startling Max. "I don't eat animals, only fruit. And even if I did, I couldn't catch anything; not in the state I'm in right about now."

"Why, what's wrong?" asked Monica, while Max tried to stay out of the conversation with the huge gorilla, still surprised that it could speak.

"Well a while ago I came to this place and I felt a little hungry, so I ate a few of the apples in this tree. When I did, my whole body just up and froze, and I couldn't move. It's my own fault, messing with the Holy One's forbidden fruit."

"Holy One?" Max questioned.

"The Holy One is a huge fish that's brings happiness to this part of the woods. It's said to live in that big ol' swamp there. Normally I stay away from this place in case I end up like those little Firbits over there."

"You mean this Holy One got to those Firbits?"

"That's right. It keeps people here and then eats them when it's really hungry. Normally it eats the apples in this tree. I should have known better than to eat the Holy One's food."

Monica inspected one of the apples on the ground.

"Hey, these apples are poisonous. No wonder you feel so bad." Monica said, but when she saw Utan's face she quickly added "But don't worry. It's no big deal to a big guy like you. Just rest awhile and you'll be fine."

The two kids moved away from Utan.

"By the looks of things, I'd say this Holy fish is just a monster with a thrall. We'll have to face him if we want to save those Firbits."

"You don't think... that, it ate that woman Holly do you?" Max asked nervously.

Monica frowned and said "There's only one way to find out. You're gonna have to fish this Holy One out of the swamp."

"Huh! What do you mean?" asked a startled Max.

"Well, we know this fish likes poison apples, we know where to find it and that Firbit has a fishing rod; so what are we waiting for?"

"Well..." Max looked back at the foreboding swamp with grim mist steadily rising from it "couldn't you-"

"No way. I don't know a thing about fishing. Besides, I thought all guys liked to fish."

"Well," as a matter of fact, Max did like fishing, but he wasn't feeling up to fishing for some mystical leviathan who hypnotised and ate people, so he said "I'm not sure that Firbit will let us have his fishing rod."

"Just leave it to me. I'll get that thing from him in no time."

By this time they'd reached the Firbit who was looking at them expectantly.

"Hey Mr...,"

"Terrytammy."

"Terrytammy. We've been talking and we've thought of something that might help you and your friends. We need to borrow your fishing rod so we-"

"No! No way" Terrytammy yelled. "This be me most treasured possession. I can ne' give it ter yer for love or money."

"But-"

"No!"

"Not for anything?" Monica pleaded.

"Never!"

"Not even for a bottle of grape juice?" Max asked, holding the bottle from Conda just out of reach.

The Firbit jumped up and snatched the bottle.

"Ah, this'll do great. T'anks." he said, handing over the fishing rod.

This time, Monica looked surprised, while Max smiled smugly.

"Hmm, that was easy."

Monica's eyes narrowed for a moment, but then she smiled sweetly and laid her hand on Max's shoulder.

"Good work my big, strong hero." Monica said in a voice as sweet as her smile. "Now you just have to go and single handedly capture that huge monster fish for me." she added.

Max's face fell as Monica began to steer him towards the swamp.

" 'Ere, yer can 'ave this fer bait as well." Terrytammy called out.

The two adventurers turned round just in time to see a large, wet fish being thrown through the air before it hit Monica.

"Eww, gross! Keep it away!" Monica shouted, throwing the flapping fish to Max.

"What's wrong? It's only a fish." Max held out the green fish by its tail so Monica could see.

"It's all slimy and horrible. Get rid of it."

"No. We might need it for bait."

"But it's sick."

"Don't worry. Your big strong hero will protect you from it."

Max laughed and headed back to the swamp. Monica grimaced, but followed anyway.

* * *

Back at the swamp, Max started fishing with one of the poisonous apples. It was only a matter of seconds before something _big_ tugged the line.

Max pulled the fishing rod, but the line was stuck fast. He tugged it viciously and the line snapped, causing him to fall over backwards.

Monica sighed and reached out a hand to help Max up. As she took hold of his hand, a bubbling noise came from the swamp.

Max and Monica just managed to glimpse a patch of large bubbles bursting on the surface of the water before a wall of flesh loomed up in front of them.

The fish was as big as a ship. It's body was dark purple and it's lips were rose red, along with five metre long yellow eyelashes over sea blue eyes and bright yellow fins.

"What's going here! There's a hook stuck in my_ beeeee_utiful lips! Is this your doing? I won't forgive this!" cried the enormous fish in a voice that might have sounded fierce if it wasn't so exaggeratedly feminine.

"Never mind about your lips." Monica hissed. "You're the one who's gotten to those Firbits. You have to change them back."

The fish giggled girlishly and said "Ah yes, more victims of my incredible beauty. Beauty can be a curse you know."

"Whatever," Monica replied angrily "those Firbits have been bewitched so that you can eat them."

"Well really; I have to eat you know."

"Well we need them alive, so change them back to normal!"

"Well, me'dear'_ssss_, something like that would be quite simple," the fish said, but then added "but nothing comes for fr_eeeeee_ you know!" in a sing-song voice.

"Oh boy, another pain." said Monica.

"So, what do you want us to do?" Max asked.

"Ohhhh!" the fish squealed in delight. "So the little boy understands _too._ Very well, listen careful. I won't say this again." the so-called Holy fish sent them a massive wink.

"As everyone knows, I'm very fond of beautiful things. But here's the thing; lately I've become a bit...dirty. It's so humiliating. But here this. There is a fish called the Prisclean fish, that can clean up _alllll_ the dirt from my body. But they're quite rare in this swamp. _Soooooooo_, what I want you to do is go and catch one for me! You've got all that fishing gear so you might as well use it."

"So we get one of these fish, and you turn those Firbits back to normal, right?" Max asked

"Yes, yes. You don't have to tell a man twice!" the fish complained.

"What! You're a guy!" Monica exclaimed.

The Holy One's eyes narrowed and he shouted "What's that supposed to mean!" in his extremely camp voice.

Monica suddenly found herself at a loss for words, but fortunately, Max came to the rescue before she could start stuttering.

"If this fish is so rare, how can we find it? The only thing we have for bait is this." Max held up the fish Terrytammy had thrown at them.

"Ohhhhhhhh! You've got it!" the huge fish squealed. "Quick, throw it in!"

Max quickly recovered from his surprise and threw the still twitching fish into the swamp.

"Wow, Max. How do you do that? You have super luck or something?" Monica asked, sounding genuinely impressed, while the Holy one giggled in delight

"It was nothing." Max tried to sound modest, in spite of the fact he felt pleased to have impressed Monica.

"_Ooooo_!" the fish monster suddenly began singing. "This lovely Prisclean_ fiii_sh, will kiss all the grime off my bod_yyyyy_-"

"Argh! That's disgusting!" Monica turned away with a grimace.

"-and make me look _stunning_ again!"

"Okay, now you've gotta change those Firbits back." Max said.

"Oh yes, I suppose I did promise. Is _this_ what you wanted?" the giant fish made a massive kiss and a pink cloud gushed from his lips.

"H-hey!" Monica choked through the strongly scented fumes. "I-is this gonna change those F-Firbits?"

"Well, why don't you go and see for yourselves?" the fish began to float away from the water's edge.

"Hey," Max called "Before you go, did you see another person around these woods?"

"Oh yes," the fish suddenly sounded grim "there was this odd little human woman around here some time ago."

"There was! Well where is she! Did you do something to her!" Max asked frantically, surprising both Monica and the Holy one.

"Calm yourself little boy; I haven't touched her. She wasn't my type." the fish sniffed disapprovingly.

"Where is she?"

"Oh, she wandered off deeper into the woods. Distracted little thing kept muttering about butterflies or something." the technicoloured fish lifted it's head into the air and said "Well, if you'll excuse me." before diving out of sight.

"Hmm; hopefully that's the last we'll see of him." Monica said as she started walking back to where they'd left the Firbits.

"By the way Max," she said as her companion caught up "how come you got so panicked when he mentioned that woman, assuming it was Holly he was talking about?"

"Well," once again, Max felt uncomfortable with explaining about his mother "I was just making sure we had something to go on."

"Yeah, but you got pretty worked up when you heard she was in the wood." Monica continued.

She stopped and turned to face Max.

"Something's up, isn't it?"

Max looked at his feet.

"Well...it's just," Max paused

"Hey!"

They both looked round to see Terrytammy running towards them with his three friends.

"Me mates 'ave gone 'n' righted 'emselves." the heavily bearded Terrytammy exclaimed.

"What's 'appened? I don't remember what I've been doin' all this time." a Firbit with a blond moustache shaped like a pair of stars said to his friend, who replied "Last thing I remember was stopping for a drink from the swamp." all the Firbit's had strong Irish accents.

"You were all bewitched by the creature in this swamp. We've been sent by your chief Conda to find you."

"Conda! The man will be furious that we've been wastin' time 'ere."

"We better get back right now."

"We better go back with them." Max said.

Monica went to speak again, but Max had already started off towards the bridge.

* * *

**I didn't want to tell Monica that I was looking for you Mother. It may sound strange, but I felt as though I might disappoint her if she knew about you. I'd been travelling with her for less than a day, but I really liked her, and she was so grateful to me for agreeing to help her. I thought that if I told her about my ambition to find you, she might think I was only helping her to help myself. As it turned out, things probably would have been simpler if I told her about you from the start.**

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X

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_**Yes I know Terrytammy isn't that guys real name but I forgot to check that when I played the game. And I hope you all enjoyed my very camp Holy fish. Now please review this chapter in return for all the hard work I put into this. And SE-RI-OUS-LY, I'd rather have reviews, good or bad, than nothing at all.**_

_**P.S. Those of you thinking that the bit where he goes **_"BLAAA- THE CABBAGE!" _**was just me being silly, no. It was paying homage to Terry Pratchett's 'Hogfather'**_

"Who _are_ you?"

"…I'm your worst nightmare!"

"You mean…the one with the giant cabbage and the sort of whirring knife thing?"

…

"No," said Teatime. "Not that one." He withdrew a dagger from his sleeve. "I'm the one where this man comes out of nowhere and kills you stone dead."

The guard grinned with relief. "Oh, _that_ one," he said. "But that one's not very—

_**So there!**_


	8. Resurrection of the great elder pt 3

_**Chapter two part three. As always, I own nothing of Dark Chronicle**_

**Dark Chronicle**

**Chapter 2: Resurrection of the great elder **

**Part 3- Small friends can be powerful allies **

Chief Conda jumped awake when the door to the hut burst open. He jumped from his seat, expecting a fight with a rogue monster, but it turned out to be the kids who'd agreed to help him earlier.

"Oh, it's you two. What ya' doin'-"

Without warning the missing search party barged in and skidded to a halt in front of Conda. Despite being surprised by there appearance, Conda quickly called a meeting together to find out what had happened.

* * *

Max and Monica watched in slightly confused silence. Conda had shouted "HOUSE MEETING!" and all seven Firbits were now sitting at the log table, each one shouting loudly about something or other. Apparently they somehow understood each other, because after a minute they all stopped at once and Conda looked at the two kids.

"Kids, it looks like yer've done us a great favour." Conda said in his rough voice. "So, it's time we kept up our side of the deal. We'll let yer use our creation magic, and in return, we want yer to go an' look for Holly for us. It sounds like the stories of the rainbow coloured butterfly were true; anyone that sets eyes on it never leaves the woods again. Probably the only way to find Holly is to fall under the same spell, then ter find a way to break it. Will yer do it?"

"Well, that's kind of a long shot..." Monica said.

"Okay then, we've got a deal. We better get to work, right lads?"

"Yeah!" the six other Firbits yelled in agreement and ran out of the hut, followed by Max and Monica.

"You know, these Firbits are pretty sneaky at getting what they want," Monica said as she and Max watched the Firbits sprint to the west ridge and dive into the bushes "although I still think we should search for Holly if she's trapped in the woods."

"Yeah," Max said, suddenly sounding lost in thought. Monica looked at him.

"I'm glad you agree; some people would prefer to leave her in the woods than to risk looking for her."

Max nodded in response.

"Though I'm still wondering why you're so particularly worried about her."

Max finally realised what Monica was getting at. He turned to face her directly.

"Mon-"

"Max," Monica cut him off before he could start, turning to face him. "I know there's something wrong; you avoided telling me in the woods, but I want to know what it is, _now._" Monica's face looked angry, but also looked a little sad.

"It's...nothing." Max said, trying to both avoid Monica's eyes and not appear to be avoiding her eyes.

"Max," Monica was starting to look quite upset, but she tried to appear serious. "If we're gonna get through this, we need to trust each. I know we haven't known each other for long, but I'm on your side Max, and you _can _trust me."

Max felt unbelievably guilty.

_'I know I can trust you Monica,'_ Max thought _'but will you be able to trust me if I tell you the truth?'_ Max hoped desperately something would happen to distract Monica.

Once again, Max's 'super luck' saved him at the last moment.

Just as Monica went to speak again, a strange sound began echoing through the field of Sindain. A repetitive chugging similar to the Blackstone One engine, but slightly higher pitched.

Then the trees which the Firbits had disappeared into began to shift. Then two massive pine trees began rising above the rest. Two hand shaped cluster of bushes appeared above the forest, holding the pine trees. Then thatched, spinning propeller blades followed, extended on top of four wooden poles. The poles were revealed to be ten feet long as the propeller blades moved steadily upwards. Then a mass of wood and foliage rose into view, carried by the propeller.

The wooden body had six arms coming from it; two with hands, currently holding the pine trees, and the other four equipped with a brush, a trowel, a mallet and an adjustable spanner, all in proportion to the gigantic size of the flying machine, which was big enough the pick up a mansion. The front of the contraption had two large, red windows in the shape of eyes, complete with bushes for eyebrows and eyelids made from thick animal hides.

"What is that?" Monica asked in amazement.

"It's a..." Max paused "...thing..." another pause "...AND IT'S AWESOME!"

The flying machine floated over to the Firbit's hut, then slammed one of the trees into the earth. All the available arms began working on the base of the tree, until the roots were so carefully buried that it looked as though the tree had always been there. Then the second arm rose up-

"MAX! LOOK OUT!"

-and smashed the tree where Max was standing a second and a half ago.

"THAT IS SO COOL!" Max yelled, apparently ignorant to that fact that he should be dead.

The 'thing' moved so it was clear of the trees it had planted, before a small disc extended from beneath the machine, carrying Conda.

"So, wadda' ye think?" he asked. Max and Monica didn't answer.

"This is our creation magic. Ye come aboard an' I'll explain it to ye."

Max and Monica quickly joined Conda and the disc retracted back into the 'thing'.

Inside, they found themselves at the back of a small room lit by sunset coloured lamps. Directly in front of the lift was a high backed chair which Conda ran round to the front of so he could jump onto the seat. In the front half of the room the Firbits sat round the edge of a large console, where they could look out of the windows. In the centre of the room was a hole in the floor, through which a gold and red light could be seen.

"Okay then kids," Conda said jovially "welcome to the Carpenterion."

"The what?" Monica asked.

"The Carpenterion, lass. This is the creation magic yer after.

"Doesn't look very magical." Max commented, trying to look everywhere at once.

"Well it wouldn't, would it? This thing isn't just magic; it was built by the Ancients." Conda whispered the name Ancients as though someone might be listening.

"What exactly are Ancients?" Monica asked. Max looked at her, surprised that there was something she didn't know. Monica noticed and shrugged, saying "No one's perfect."

"Well listen up you two," Conda said "the Ancients are the ones who were the first livin' beings to walk the earth. They were around when the powers that created existence were still in use, 'an they used those powers ter create many amazin' things, includin' the Carpenterion." Conda continued to speak in a hushed voice. "Once they'd finished creatin' and had paved the way fer civilisations, it said they used there powers to leave this world an' 'ead fer the stars. It's also said that the Moon People in throughout the world are the descendents of Ancients who created the blue moon before decidin' to return to us, 'ence the name Moon People."

"Moon people?" Monica asked while Max arched his eyebrows.

"The people who look like rabbits walkin' on two legs. They're rare, but yer must 'ave seen em."

Max and Monica nodded. Although they were indeed rare, 'Rabbit people' weren't uncommon. There was even one called Rufio living in Palm Brinks.

"Well, they made the Carpenterion usin' the powers before magic, along with the Geostones ter power it." Max went to say something, but Conda already new they wouldn't have a clue what he was on about and continued.

"The Geostones are egg shaped rocks that hold the information of everything in the world. If yer can find some in the forest, yer can bung 'em in the reactor," he gestured at the hole in the floor "an' yer can create things with the information stored in the Geostone. But the all the Geostones the Ancients created were hidden away. In this case, they would 'ave been hidden in the woods. If yer want ter use this thing, yer gonna have ter find some Geostones first."

"So we've got to go into the woods and find these Geostones; and while we're doing that, you want us to use the opportunity to look for your friend Holly, right?" Monica summed up.

"Exactly!" Conda cried cheerfully.

* * *

"So how are we supposed to find these Geostones?" asked Max. "We didn't see any on our way in here."

By now they had reached the swamp where the Holy Fish lived.

"Well, Conda said they'd be hidden deep in the woods, so I would think we've still got to go a long way before we find any; but just to be sure, I know who we can ask."

They turned a corner, and a short distance away was Master Utan, leaning against the pile of boulders that blocked the path leading deeper into the woods.

"Hey, Master Utan! You look a lot better." Max said as he approached the giant gorilla.

"Yeah," Utan said "guess you two were right about that apple. No hexes or nothing. I guess I just ate something I shouldn't have."

"Well, we were wondering if you could help us." Max said.

"Yeah, and first of all," Monica spoke up, causing the two males to look at her "do you think you can do something about these boulders?"

"These? Piece of cake." Utan replied, and with that, he seized the largest of the offending rocks and hoisted it high above his head, scattering the rest of them like leaves.

"Wow! Master Utan, you're so strong!" Max exclaimed.

The moment, however, was anti-climaxed by the sound of something going _'crack'_ in Utan's back, causing Utan himself to yell and drop the boulder, narrowly avoiding crushing his own head.

"Oh boy," Utan chuckled in spite of himself, clasping a massive hand to his back "looks like I've gone and done my back in."

"You should try and exercise more." Monica commented. "You'll just have to have another rest till you back's better."

As Utan sat down, Monica asked "By the way, we're looking for these things called Geostones. Do you know where we can find them?"

"Oh yeah," the giant gorilla groaned thoughtfully "there are some strange stones in the woods. Just keep going down the paths and you'll find them just lying around."

"Okay, thanks Master Utan."

With a quick wave at the huge ape, the two adventurers headed off into the woods.

* * *

_**X**_

* * *

Slightly boring part I know, but necessary for the story. I'm starting to realise why no one else has tried novelisation before.


	9. Resurrection of the great elder pt 4

_**Chapter two part four. Hope you're coping with this long chapter. I promise after this there will only be one more part.**_

_**I PROMISE! **_

**Dark Chronicle **

**Chapter 2: Resurrection of the great elder **

**Part 4- Can we fix it? **

The journey though the woods was no better than it was the first time, although it was slightly more interesting as every so often the found a large, oval shaped rock, glowing red and gold. A Geostone.

By the afternoon they were looking for somewhere to stop and rest. They didn't have to carry the geostones as for some reason they rolled after the two adventurers as soon as they were touched, yet all the walking and fighting they had endured was taking it's toll.

At least it was on Monica. Max on the other hand, had overcome his initial fear of the wood and now had the excitement of a kid in a candy store. By the look on his face as Monica sat down on the root of a tree, the last thing he wanted to do was stop and rest. He grudgingly sat down next to Monica and started reloading his pistol.

"So, how far does the wood go?" Max asked.

Monica lay back with her eyes closed to think. With her eyes closed and Max concentrating on his gun, neither of them noticed the movement in the bushes in front of them

"It shouldn't be too far now." Monica said casually. "We'll eventually come to a lake in a canyon which flows down to Palm Brinks and then into the sea. Should be about an hour."

Max blanched.

"An hour? You said it wasn't too far!"

"Well that isn't too far. This is one of the biggest forests in the world. We're just lucky that the station was so close."

Max frowned and said "I never knew there were places in the world that were this big."

As Max continued frowning, Monica leaned forward and placed a friendly hand on Max's shoulder, causing him to look at her.

"You better get used to it." She grinned. "We're gonna see a lot more before this is over. Just think of it as-"

Monica was cut off as an ear splitting explosion screamed through the forest and something shot out of the nearby bushes, hitting her in the arm. She shrieked in pain as blood sprayed from her shoulder while Max jumped to his feet, trying to realise what had happened.

That's when the fox stepped out from his hiding place.

Standing on it's hind legs, it was as tall as a fully grown man. The reddish brown fur on it's back and the white fur down it's front was elegantly groomed, while the green moss coat it wore looked well cared for. It stopped a few feet away from them, lovingly cradling the double barrelled shotgun that had hit Monica.

"Well, well, well," it drawled in a posh voice, causing Max to choke in surprise. "What have we here? A pair of young whippersnappers trespassing in the woods. Unacceptable. Only one thing to be done about this."

The large canine cocked the second chamber of it's weapon. Max quickly pulled his drill wrench from his belt, but the shotgun fired and the wrench went spinning away.

The fox chuckled and broke open his shotgun to reload, but quickly slammed it shut and lifted it, just in time to block a bullet fired from Max's Classic Gun. The bullet ricocheted off the stock and ended up whistling over Monica's head, causing her to dive for cover behind a nearby tree.

Max tried to fire again, but in the confusion of the ambush he'd neglected to reload a full magazine, loading instead a magazine with only one bullet. The fox quickly dived for cover when the ominous 'click' came from the boy's gun. Max quickly did the same, grabbing a full magazine as he went.

"Are you alright?" He asked as he crouched next to Monica in the bushes.

"I'm fine," she hissed through gritted teeth "but I need to rest for a moment so I can heal this wound." She quickly began trying to simultaneously gouge the bullet out of her shoulder with a knife and cram a type of healing herb into her wound.

There was another gun shot from the fox.

"Wait here," said Max "I'll see if I can deal with that fox."

Max dived away from Monica before she could answer and began firing in the direction of the enemy, who responded by firing another shotgun shell, blowing apart a rhododendron in the process.

In a matter of seconds Max and the fox were engaged in a battle of shooting and diving for cover, neither of them scoring any hits. Max was quickly becoming concerned about the number of bullets he had left when the fox stopped firing.

Max listened intently but couldn't here anything.

Uncertain whether he'd hit the beast or not, he crept cautiously from his hiding place. There was no reaction from the bushes.

Max kept his gunned trained on the place he'd last seen the fox as he picked up his wrench. There was still no sign of the enemy.

Max took a step back, then turned his head to call out to Monica.

That's when the fox leapt from the bushes to Max's left.

As Max whipped his head around to see the hunter, just before it fired both barrels.

"MAX!"

By rights, Max should have been killed. No one should be allowed to live after a double barrelled shotgun had been fired at them. Even if, by the million to one chance, that person was holding a wrench and pistol at the time and the shells struck squarely against them, the force would probably break that person's forearms, leaving them totally defenceless. The chance that the person would lose their grip on their weapons in surprise at the right moment so that they would be knocked away, merely spraining the person's wrists, would be so unlikely that no one in their right mind would believe it was possible.

And yet it happened.

Once again, Max bested impossible odds, and was left lying flat on his back, slight sprain in his wrists, reeling from shock.

Monica, who was watching from her hiding place, and the fox were equally stunned, but it was the fox who recovered first. He broke open his weapon and began reloading. Max jumped up and raced towards him.

As the fox closed the breach and raised his weapon, the unarmed Max jumped off a nearby boulder and delivered a vicious flying kick to the beast's snout.

They both tumbled to the ground, and Monica watched in awe as Max flipped onto his feet, grabbed the shotgun and ended the battle.

She moved over to Max, still rubbing her wounded arm.

"Nice work Max." she said, before she saw the state of the fox's head and quickly turned away.

Max moved away as well, and Monica noticed a concerned look on his face.

"You okay Max?"

"Err…" Max looked at her. "I…it just…I felt, different, killing a talking creature. It felt a bit like I was killing a human."

"Well, there's no need to feel bad." Monica replied. "It was a fight; he would have killed you if he could have."

"Conda said that the monsters in the forest had become violent because of Griffin's power. You don't suppose they're being controlled to fight us, do you?"

Now Monica did feel uncomfortable.

"Well…I guess there's a chance they could be." she admitted. "But we can't hold back because of that. We're trying to save the world remember?" she spoke confidently, but made a point not to look Max in the eye as she did.

Max nodded in uneasy agreement and gathered up his things. After a short rest, the pair began walking again, each hoping not to meet any more monsters.

* * *

After travelling for over an hour (they got lost on the way), they came to a small clearing. On the opposite side, the path ended at a cliff edge. Across a vast expanse there were other cliffs with waterfalls pouring down their chalk white faces, down to a massive lake far below. Cool mists filled the void in between the cliffs, creating a huge rainbow, adding to the already breathtaking tropical image. In the clearing Max and Monica stood was a shallow pond filled with unnaturally clear water, surrounded by lush, healthy grass.

Max was completely enraptured by the sight.

"It's...amazing..." he said.

Monica was not so impressed.

"Yeah, but it could also be dangerous."

"What do you mean 'dangerous'?"

"Well look at this place. Open to the air, a beautiful view, rainbows everywhere, no predators to worry about; doesn't this look like the sort of place the rainbow butterfly would bewitch people into wanting to stay here forever.

That put Max on guard. He quickly grabbed his gun and carefully scanned the potentially butterfly lair with his eyes. Monica was looking too, but wasn't as tense as Max.

"I think it's all right." she said evenly. "Looks like it isn't here at the moment."

"Well whadda' we do?"

Monica frowned and said "Well, I think the only thing we can do is go back to Sindain and speak to Conda. I don't really want to just wait and see if it turns up. It'll also give us a chance to use the geostones." she gestured to the small pile of glowing stones that were still following them.

"What about Holly?" Max tried to sound calm.

"Well," Monica shrugged "we'll come back, but we have to think about what we'll do. We don't want that thing to sneak up on us."

Max didn't feel comfortable about leaving, but Monica was right. There was no point waiting around on the off chance that either Holly or the butterfly would appear. With a regretful sigh, Max turned and began heading back towards Sindain, with Monica and the Geostones following closely.

* * *

Back at Sindain, the two adventurers put the Geostones in the reactor of the Carpenterion and were able to use the computers to read the information in the stones, including the details of what structures and people were needed in Sindain in order to restore the town. There were even details saying that three special trees planted near the Sindain spring would lead to the growth of Jurak.

After the initial excitement however, Max and Monica were faced with the backbreaking task of gathering materials to create everything and returning to Palm Brinks to convince a baker, a weapon shop owner, a tailor and a gardener to move to Sindain. Fortunately, they managed to convince Erik, Borneo and the Firbits to go look for the materials while they went with Cedric back to Palm Brinks to get the people (and to give Cedric a chance to get spare parts for the train, which only just managed the journey back to town).

Convincing people to move to Sindain was also a lot easier than expected. Mayor Need had let news spread about what was happening in the world and there was quiet a number of people who liked the idea of making a fresh start in a new town.

Polly the baker and Adel, the maid from Max's house were easily convinced to get on the train, although Milaine from the weapon shop insisted that Monica demonstrated her sword skills before they left, while Max's gardener Gordon wouldn't go until Max swore he'd look after his plants for as long as he lived.

* * *

**I was surprised that so many people were willing to leave the town Mother. As I said before, Palm Brinks was overcrowded and people wanted more space to live, but I never thought so many people would be prepared to take on the task of rebuilding the world that had been destroyed by Emperor Griffin. Apart from that, the only other strange thing that happened in town was when I went to visit father. I was expecting him to be mad at me for all the trouble I'd gotten myself into, but he didn't even ask what I'd been doing. Like Cedric had told me, father seemed like he was sad, as though he new what was happening to me on my adventure; or what was going to happen. He told me to take care of myself, and gave me his wildcat machine gun to help me. After that I decided I wouldn't see father again till after my adventure. Not because I wanted to avoid him, but because I had to find out what it was he was keeping from me, about you, before I could face him again. **

**

* * *

**

It took several hours, but the town of Sindain was finally rebuilt, complete with townsfolk. Max and Monica had followed all the instructions in the geostones in order to ensure that Jurak and the town was restored in the future. Now it was time to check that it worked.

Monica led Max to spring at the north side of the clearing. She seemed to be looking for something, but before Max could ask what she was looking for, they found it.

As they headed round the corner of Gordon's hut, they were met by a ball of red light. It was bigger than a human head, and hovered in the air of it's own accord, casting a strange red shadow beneath it. Of all things Max had seen since he left his home town, this was the strangest.

"What-is-that!" Max pointed at the ball.

"It's a time gate; the one I used to get to this time." Monica spoke seriously.

"What?" Max looked at his friend.

"A time gate. It's a doorway between the past and future. We can pass between this time and my time. Now that we've restored this origin point, we can go forward in time to see Jurak."

"How does it work?"

"You have to use your pendent."

Max's eyes narrowed in confusion.

"My what?"

"The red stone around your neck."

Max held up his pendent so they could both see it clearly. It felt so long since his adventure began that Max had forgotten about the stone that had caused so much trouble.

"This stone?"

"Yes. It's not just a pretty necklace. That stone is a legendary artifact with mystical powers. And it's designed to take us a hundred years into the future"

"What is it?" Max asked.

"It's called Atlamillia."

When Monica said the name, it rang a bell deep in Max's memory...

* * *

_"I'm glad you liked the story Max." the young woman asked her son as she set down the story book. _

_"It was great Mother." the five year old Max said sleepily. _

_As his Mother tucked the covers around his shoulders, the young boy asked "Did Toan every find the alamillia again?" _

_"Atlamillia," Elaine corrected gently, "but it didn't come back to him. The Atlamillia decided that Toan's adventuring was over." _

_"How did it decide if it's a stone?" Max asked. _

_"I don't know, but the Atlamillia was able to do all sorts of incredible things." _

_"Like when it had the whole town inside it, and when it made Sophia come alive again." _

_Elaine laughed kindly. _

_"That's right Max. Come on now. It's time to go to sleep." _

_

* * *

_

"You okay Max?" Monica asked

"My mother," Max said uncertainly "she told me stories about a thing called Atlamillia."

Monica's eyes widened in surprise and she said "How could she have known about them?"

"I don't know, but I thought it was just something in a stor-" Max paused, then asked "What do you mean 'them'?"

"Well, there's more than one Atlamillia." Monica said as though it was obvious. "There's the red Atlamillia which you have; that can travel a hundred years into the future. And then there's the blue Atlamillia," Monica held out her hand "which can travel a hundred years into the past."

Max was dumbfounded. On Monica's right wrist, there was a beautiful silver bracelet with swirls engraved on the edges, shaped to look like waves. In the middle of it was a large stone just like the one hanging from Max's neck. Same size, same shape, same flawlessly polished and perfectly smooth surface. Completely identical, excepted the one Monica had was aquamarine blue.

"But..." Max shook his head "How? It doesn't make sense."

"There are many stories about the Atlamillia." Monica explained. "Some say that the Atlamillia pick who they belong to. It must have decided there was something special about you."

"But, I just got given this stone by my father." Max said.

"Well... the Atlamillia must have first chosen your father, and then it chose you Max."

Max opened his mouth to argue, but stopped as he remembered the day he'd been given the stone, and it had been odd.

Max had gone to ask his father if he could go to the circus that year, knowing full well the answer would be no. When he entered the study, Max had seen the pendent sitting on the desk next his father. Gerald had worn the strange pendent for as long as Max could remember, so he was surprised that his father had taken it off. Intrigued, Max had picked it up and asked his father why he'd taken it off. When he saw Max holding the pendent, at first Gerald looked surprised, but them had the same strangely sad look that he had been wearing lately, as though he knew what Max was about to endure. It was that same day he insisted Max always wear the stone, and unexpectedly agreed to let Max go to Flotsam's circus.

Could it be that Gerald had known all along about the Atlamillia?

Max looked at the stone, unable to believe that there was some kind of conspiracy behind it; that it was an ancient magic stone that stories had claimed to be able to bring the dead to life, move though time and store absolutely anything insid-

Max suddenly froze. Monica, who had been waiting patiently for Max to sort things out in his head, noticed her friend's tension and leaned forward to look at the red Atlamillia.

"What's up Max?" she asked.

"T...there's writing on the stone!" Max exclaimed, holding out the pendent. As they watched, sun yellow letters drifted across the surface of the stone, spelling out the word _'Ridepod'_.

Monica was impressed.

"Wow, you managed to put something inside it Max! I've trying to that for ages and it's been useless! I'm so jealous of you! How did you do it! Tell me! Please, it'd be so cool! I've had this thing for nearly a week and I haven't even been able-"

"I don't how I did it!" Max interrupted the excited babble. Monica's face fell.

"Oh...well, your supposed to concentrate the object in or out of the stone to make it work. Try it."

Unsure if anything would happen but interested enough to try, Max looked at the stone and thought about the Ridepod he'd successfully destroyed. The word _'Ridepod' _stopped moving over the Atlamillia and stayed visible on the surface. Max closed his eyes and tried to concentrate harder, but nothing happened. He shut out the sounds around himself and focussed solely on the idea of the Ridepod appearing again.

After a few seconds there was a crash.

Max was so focussed the sound made him fall over with shock. Monica helped him up and excitedly pointed at something. Max looked, and to his horror, Steve the Ridepod had appeared, except it was a lot more damaged than when he'd last seen it.

"Max, you did it!" Monica shouted gleefully. "You must be a natural when it comes to magic!"

"What-happened-to-it!" Max gaped.

"Well, you made it materialise about fifteen feet in the air."

Max turned to look at her.

"You said I was a natural."

"Not that natural, but a good start."

Max looked at the wreck named Steve, then at the stone around his neck, then back to Monica.

"What else do you know about these Atlamillia?"

"Well, not much." Monica shrugged "They're said to be three types; red, blue and yellow. Apart from that, the only other thing is this prophecy called the legend of the stones that was apparently made by someone called the Master of the Ancients."

"You mean the Ancients that Conda mentioned?" Max asked.

"Well, maybe. Although I'd never heard of _the_ Ancients till he told us about them." Monica said.

"Anyway, it's said that he who obtains the three Atlamillia receives the power of the stars."

Max looked blank.

"Eh... some say that it means their will power becomes infinite and their influence will reach everywhere like starlight."

"So," Max raised an eyebrow "basically, bad news for us?"

Monica chuckled.

"So where is the yellow Atlamillia?" Max asked.

"I don't know, but-"

"Hey Max, Monica. What's goin' on back there?" a familiar voice called.

Max freaked out.

"It's Cedric! What am I gonna do! He'll go crazy when he sees this!" Max pointed at the Ridepod.

Monica allowed herself one smile at Max's predicament before saying "Only one thing for it."

"What?"

"Run!" Monica grabbed Max's arm and dragged him into the time gate, and the two children dissolved into the light just as Cedric's head appeared round the corner.

* * *

X

* * *

_**Credit to Yusari for betaing this chapter part and Drowning in Ice for the idea of Max going 'gun to gun with a hunter fox'. Now please review.**_


	10. CHAPTER DOUBLE DIGIT

_**Hello. Yes it's me, the great SPG inc. Just thought I'd drop you a line (or a few) so please enjoy this small snippet of the next chapter**_

-------------------------------------------------------------------------

"You really think this is safe?" Max asked.

"There's no need to worry Max," Monica assured him

_'That creature,' _thought the plant _'that's a human. Tricky... it might be prey, but it might be predator. Humans are so unpredictable. Wait a sec, its heart is beating faster than it should. It's worried, or anxious. That makes it more dangeroues. Best stay away from it.'_

In the end she reached the other monster without incident and planted herself in front of it.

To a human mind the himarra was no different than any other. The plant's squat, light green body and yellow flower head looked identical. But to Monica's plant mind, the sutble differences like the pattern of it's skin and the arrangment of it's petals were clear.

"Hello." she said simply to the plant.

It stared at her. She stared back.

"_Uh oh," _thought Monica _"something's gone wrong."_

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_**I've given you this small extract for two reasons. One to prove that I am not in fact dead. Two, I have a question I wish to put to my readers and the site won't allow a/n only chapters. Just wanted to know the general opinion on this very important question**_

Should there actually be a Max/Monica pairing in this fic? What do you think?


	11. Resurrection of the great elder pt 5

_**I lied, so sue me. This is not the last part of the chapter, it's second to last. Sorry 'bout the delay but my computer seems to hate at the moment and crashed 3 times while I was writing this. Also, Meg, sorry for not getting you to beta this chapter, I'm just so sick of the site of it I couldn't bare to wait. Chapter 2 part 5.**_

**Dark Chronicle**

**Chapter 2: Resurrection of the great elder **

**Part 5- Appearances can be deceiving**

Max knew he must look pretty stupid. His eyes were painfully wide, and his mouth was hanging open as far as it could go. But he didn't care. The future was amazing.

The dark brown trees were no longer tall and thin, but thick and squat, most no taller than a three story house, with branches thick enough for huts to balance on.

Which they did.

The small areas that weren't swamped with trees were bare except for dark green grass and the occasional patch of purple mushrooms which glowed with inner light. All the dwellings were either built on tree branches or in holes that had been bored out of the trunks. A massively wide lake circled the small copse, and the sky that could be seen though the trees was cloudless, starless, twilight blue.

"Monica," Max breathed in awe "this place is..." a selection of words passed though Max's head, before he settled for "cool."

"Thanks, but it's not that great." Monica replied "I think your world is much better, especially the sky."

Max looked up at the sky and asked "Why is it so dark?"

"Magic pollution. If magic is used on an industrial scale it can end up damaging the atmosphere. In my kingdom it was outlawed by my fathe-" Monica abruptly stopped her informative monologue. Max looked at her, and was surprised (and worried) to see her hang her head as her face lost its usual pleasant expression to be replaced by a look of pain.

"What's wrong Monica?"

Monica glanced at Max's direction, but didn't look him in the eye. After a short pause she said "Nothing's wrong." though her face looked strangely void of emotion and she spoke stiffly.

"Are you sure?" Max asked tentatively, placing a friendly hand on her shoulder in spite of what happened last time he did.

Monica seemed to stand a little straighter when she felt his hand, but her face still masked the cheerful person she had been a moment ago, and she soon pulled away from Max's hand saying "It's nothing."

She walked further into the wood. Max followed, wondering why mentioning Monica's father had upset her.

It was strange, Max thought as he caught up with his companion. They both enjoyed each other's company from the moment they met, but they were both a mystery to each other. From what Monica had said about outlawing, it sounded like Monica's father was an important person, yet he honestly didn't know. Max just hoped they'd be able to keep working together in spite of their lack of understanding of each other.

Eventually they came to a clearing wider than any other, with a sign outside that read 'Welcome to Jurak Mall'.

"Does the person we're looking for run a mall?" Max questioned as they approached a particularly huge tree, with two large, hollow funnels at ground level and a cave like hole further up. One of the funnels contained some sort of clothes shop, while the hole further up the tree held a café.

"Actually," Monica said "Jurak _is_ the mall."

Max looked around, wondering exactly what she meant. The mall was just a clearing with the occasional stall set up. The two largest shops were the ones set in the tree. There were several people milling around the clearing, but they were all Firbits and none of them paid any attention to the pair of children.

Max was about to ask how Jurak could be the mall when he heard a low, creaking sound. The tree before them shuddered. Its branches shuffled, sounding like thousands of scuttling insects, and large flocks of dark blue birds scattered into the sky.

"What's that?" ask a bewildered Max. Monica didn't answer, too busy watching the tree as a low moan came from within. Then two large circular orbs in the middle of the trunk began twitching. The orbs opened up to reveal a fleshy, liquid blue interior with small deep blue circles in the centre.

As Max took in the sight he exclaimed "No way! Jurak's a _tree_!"

The blue orbs were beach ball sized eyeballs, and it was clear that the hollow funnels at the base of the tree were nostrils.

_"Ohhhh_," rumbled the tree in a slow, deep voice that seemed to echo in the air around them "_Hello. So you are the ones who restored me. It's strange. I feel like I've slept for a lonnnnng time."_

"Jurak," Monica bowed her head "we need your help. We need to know about a creature called Emperor Griffon. We believe he's a terrible monster who's taken over the forces of darkness."

Jurak rumbled, apparently deep in thought.

"He's been playing with reality across different eras. We don't know what his true goal is, but if we don't stop him the whole world may disappear. He even erased you Jurak by destroying your origin point. Can you help us?"

"_Hmmmm, Griffon. Let me see._" Jurak rumbled. "_I'm afraid I don't remember._"

"But, Jurak!" Monica sounded desperate. "I've heard that you're been around since the beginning of time. I hear you've been reincarnated many times, but you retain the memories of your ancestors. You must be able to tell us something about Griffin. Who he is; where he is?"

_"Hmmmm, my memories must not all be back yet, I guess. I'm truly sorry."_

Monica sighed in frustration and covered her face with her hand. Max, unsure what he should do to help, stepped forward and said "Jurak, do you know why what we can do to restore your memory?"

Jurak rumbled thoughtfully.

_"I believe there was some problem with a creature, known as a Rainbow Butterfly, but I can't remember exactly what was wrong with it."_

Monica looked up eagerly, while Max quickly said "Can you tell us about this creature? We'd really like to meet it."

_"Weeeeeell," _Jurak groaned _"it's a very rare monster, but it's not evil at all. They usually nest around the great canyon at the edge of the forest, but the best way to find one, is to use a lafrescia flower. Rainbow Butterflies are attracted to them."_

"Lafrescia? I know them." Monica said "There weren't any in the forest."

"Maybe you just missed them?" Max suggested.

Monica raised an eyebrow.

"They're forty foot high, Max."

"Oh..."

_"Hmmmm, if they're not in bloom, you'll have to make them bloom."_

Jurak's right nostril twisted so that its pitch black interior was facing the two teenagers. Jurak groaned slightly. The nostril trembled a little, then a lot, and then exploded with a giant sneeze. Max and Monica quickly raised their arms to cover their faces, when something resembling a brown cannonball came hurtling out of the nose and knocked Max flat.

Monica sniggered as Max got up and examined the 'cannonball'. It appeared to be a large seed.

_"Plant that in the woods and a bud will grow," _Jurak explained_ "but it takes more than that for a flower to show. To make the bud grow into a flower, you'll need to feed it sun drops. It's a type of sap that the monster himarra produce. If you want to get the sun drops, you must speak with a himarra."_

Both Max and Monica raised their eyebrows to their foreheads.

"Speak to a monster, that's nuts!" Max exclaimed.

"How can we possibly do that?" added Monica.

_"You'll have to think of that yourselves."_ Jurak replied. Then the tree's nose trembled again. There was another sneeze and something else shot out of the nasal passage, this time bowling Monica over.

_"I'm don't remember exactly what that is," _Jurak said_ "but I believe it can help you. Good luck."_

Seeing that the meeting was over, Max and Monica began heading back to the time gate.

"What's that thing he gave you?" asked Max.

Monica held up the odd looking token. It was a pocket-watch sized, vaguely star shaped object, coloured mainly green and yellow and made of something that looked like plastic.

"Well, I've never seen one before, but I think it might be a monster change badge."

"A monster change badge?"

"That's right, and if it is then it defiantly will help us."

The conversation paused for a moment as they reached the time gate. Since they were in the future and the gate was to take them to the past, it shone with a blue light this time. Monica held out her Atlamillia as they stepped into the light, and once again they were both temporarily blinded as the dim glow intensified to solid white, before changing to dim red as they arrived in the past.

"So," Max said thoughtfully as they continued walking "you can use that badge to change into a himarra, then you can produce some sun drops?"

"No, I can't do that. But if I turn into a himarra I can talk with another himarra and they can give me some sun drops."

"So where do we plant this seed?"

"In the pool of water we found on the cliff edge." Monica said confidently "Lafrescia's need lots of water to stay healthy, so-"

"Hey Max, Monica. Is that you?" a familiar voice called out.

"Cedric!" Max went pale. "He'll kill me for what I did to the Ridepod!"

"Oh come on Max," Monica grinned "surely it won't be _that_ bad?"

In response, Max ran off in the direction of the woods. Monica shook her head.

"Fancy being afraid of some guy just becaus-"

"What's that ye yellin' about Cedric?" another voice sounded closer. Erik's voice.

Monica's smile disappeared.

"Maybe heading to the woods wouldn't be such a bad idea." she muttered, before chasing after Max

* * *

"You really think this is safe?" Max asked.

"There's no need to worry Max," Monica assured him "If the monster realises I'm a human I can just change back and defeat it."

"All the same, shouldn't I stay nearby just in case?"

"No, the monster will sense you and run off. Just stay with that lafrescia bud till I come back."

Monica gestured towards the path leading to the cliff edge. The seed they'd planted in the shallow pool had turned into a large bud. Now they needed some sun drops.

Max was reluctant to allow Monica to face a monster alone when she couldn't use a sword, but she had explained she would have to share human and monster instincts in the transformation, and if she saw Max she might lose control and attack him.

"But what if it sees through the disguise?" Max insisted.

"Then we'll have to think of something else." she answered matter-of-factly.

Max opened his mouth to argue again, but Monica cut him off by saying "Max, just trust me."

Max faltered in his reply. After a moment he frowned and said "Alright, just be careful." before walking back to the Lafrescia bud.

As Monica prepared to transform into a monster, she considered Max's protective attitude. Somehow she felt strangely pleased that he cared.

Her thoughts were quickly forgotten as she began to change into a himarra. First she felt a burning, stinging sensation as the magical badge made her body malleable, then she lost all sense of thought as she began to grow rapidly into her knew shape.

When she had refocused, Monica immediately noticed the differences. For a start, she had a considerably smaller range of vision (himarra's only had one eye) but it was compensated by the large yellow flower on her head which was very sensitive to heat. Even at a distance she could sense the body heat coming from Max. As she registered her heat sensing abilities, a voice spoke in Monica's head, but she'd been expecting this. As well as the monsters body, she now had the monsters thoughts, although she was still able to keep her human mind.

_'That creature,' _thought the plant _'that's a human. Tricky... it might be prey, but it might be predator. Humans are so unpredictable. Wait a sec, its heart is beating faster than it should. It's worried, or anxious. That makes it more dangerous. Best stay away from it.'_

Monica realised Max was probably worrying about her. Once again, Monica couldn't help enjoying this fact. It made her feel more confident, even a little special, to know that Max was concerned for her safety.

Then she sensed a 'fellow' himarra nearby. Monica ran towards it, or more accurately half ran, half hopped, half tumbled along wildly on a spindly string like tangle of legs that also served as the monsters roots. As Monica waved her leaf arms to keep her balance, she wondered how on earth real himarra's could do it so effortlessly.

In the end she reached the other monster without incident and planted herself in front of it.

To a human mind the himarra was no different than any other. The plant's squat, light green body and yellow flower head looked identical. But to Monica's plant mind, the subtle differences like the pattern of it's skin and the arrangement of it's petals were clear.

"Hello." she said simply to the plant.

It stared at her. She stared back. Monica's plant mind had unexpectedly gone silent.

_"Uh oh," _thought Monica _"something's gone wrong."_

"Whooooooooa!" the himarra suddenly moaned out "I've seen a lot'a plants round these here woods, but YOU girl," Monica braced herself "are the hottest I've ever seen!"

Monica's eyes (in this case, eye) widened in complete shock. As she did, the plant voice in her head started saying _'Hot damn! That's one good lookin' guy. This has gotta be my lucky day.'_

Monica inwardly cringed as she was forced to think about how attractive the disgusting creature was.

"So, what's a cute bita' weed like you doin' in a place like this?"

"Er..." Monica uncomfortably continued the conversation. "I was wondering if you could lend me some, sun drops?"

"Whoooa-ho-HO!" the himarra shrieked. Monica grit her teeth "I love a girl who cuts right to the chase." the monster flapped the petals on his head in what passed for a seductive gesture for himarra's.

"Well guess what? I've got some spare sun drops an' I'd _love_ to share them with you."

The plant tipped it's head and a few small balls of dried sap rolled out of the centre of his head flower. By (himarra) instinct, Monica tipped her own head forward to catch the sap.

"Hey, our petals touched." the monster grinned toothily (extremely sharp toothily).

"Yeah, well I've gotta go n-" Monica started, but was cut off.

"Hey babe, wanna meet up again in the spring?" it said suggestively. "We could get to, _know,_ each other..."

Monica started to feel very sick, not because of the plants offer, but because her plant mind was thinking _'Yes! Say yes! He's so __**fine**!"_

"Sorry, gotta go!" Monica blurted out before making a run for it.

"Wait up babe!" the himarra gave chase.

_'Stop!' _Monica's plant mind thought.

"I'm a nice guy!" he yelled.

"I'm in a hurry!" Monica called back.

_'He's hot!'_

"Please!"

"Sorry, no time!"

_'He thinks I'm cute!'_

"I can be sensitive too!"

"Shove off!"

_'Turn around, NOW!'_

"And I can be a responsible parent!"

"THAT DOES IT!" Monica roared as her temper boiled over. She turned to face the himarra and transformed from plant to human in record breaking time.

The monster stopped dead as he saw his recent love interest change into a psychotically angry human girl armed with a large sword and look in her eyes that could kill. Then he screamed like finger nails down a black board and took off like a shot.

Monica was half inclined to give chase, but was distracted by movement from behind. She spun to face the threat, but it turned out to be Max running through the bushes towards her.

"What happen?" he gasped "I heard screaming."

"Nothing Max." Monica said, exasperated that he'd distracted her.

"Are you hurt?" Max asked with concern, not noticing his friends hyperactive temper.

"I-am-fine," Monica stated slowly and clearly, hoping that he'd just shut up and give her a moment to calm down.

"But wh-"

"Just give me a moment Max!" Monica nearly shouted.

While Max went silent, Monica took a deep breath and composed herself. She knew she shouldn't have lost her temper since Max had been worried about her, so she wasn't surprised when she looked at him and saw disappointment in his expression.

"Sorry Max. I just had some difficulty with the himarra; I didn't mean to lose my temper."

"Sure," Max said, quick to try and make up.

"And, thanks for looking out for me. I appreciate it." Monica said, wishing she'd kept her temper under control.

Max nodded, apparently just as embarrassed as her.

Eventually he said "So, you got the sun drops?"

"Yeah,"

Max nodded, then added uncertainly "So, why are you wearing them on your head?"

* * *

**After that, Monica gave me the sun drops and started sulking. I think I might have been a bit tactless since she obviously annoyed about something to do with the himarra.**

**Although I didn't like Monica being angry with me, I was kinda expecting her to have a short temper (I still don't know why I felt like I already knew her). Of course I was lucky; considering Monica's past, which I still wasn't aware of at the time, she'd be within her rights to scream and rage at me just for the sake of stress relief. Fortunately it didn't come to that Mother. Some 'things' happened on our journey which made a big difference to her, but that comes later in my story...**

* * *

"WHOA!" Max and Monica cried simultaneously as the effects of feeding a lafrescia sun drops were immediate.

The clearing they stood in was filled with blinding yellow light, and the ground trembled chaotically. The bud they had planted was completely lost in the light, but they could hear it groaning like a ghoul. Then the two kids were thrown back as the plant matured and erupted to it full titanic size. The stem of the fully grown lafrescia was easily as thick and wide as an oak tree, and had small, waving tentacles scattered over it. The pool of water was completely consumed by the roots which had reached out and cracked the earth in the clearing. The pinkish red petals of the flower blocked out the sun, providing enough shade for a small herd of elephants, and strings of pure white sap hung from the petals all the way down to the ground.

"This is a lafrescia?" Max queried as he got to his feet.

"Yeah," Monica answered as she joined Max "but it probably won't last long in this weather since they're out of season."

"Maybe we should try to climb onto it?" Max suggested, reaching out for one of the strings of sap.

"What are you doing!" Monica cried, grabbing his arm.

"What's wrong?"

"What's wrong!" Monica whined incredulously "Look at that thing! It's all slimy and sick! You can't touch it!"

Max stared for a moment, before the corners of his mouth began to rise in a wide grin.

"What's so funny?" Monica frowned with suspicion.

"Since I've known you, I've seen you defeat an explosive clown, chase off giant wolves, smash undead soldiers to bits, negotiate with a gorilla, a huge fish and a tree and turn into a monster plant, and I never thought you'd be the sort of girl who's afraid of getting your hands dirty."

Monica's eyes widened and a blush of embarrassment leapt to her face as she said "I'm not afraid of getting dirty, I just don't like slimy things."

"So if we meet any slugs we're done for?" Max teased.

Monica's eyes narrowed, bringing Max into sharp focus.

"Don't be stupid Max."

"What about frogs? They're quite slimy."

"Cut in out." Monica's temper began to simmer dangerously close to the surface.

Max, blissfully naive of the immediate danger he was in, added "Hope there aren't any spiders around."

"I'm not afraid of spiders!" Monica hissed.

Max nodded and opened his mouth to say something else. Not waiting to see what he had to say, Monica lunged forward and seized Max by his ear, determined to shut him up. Max fell forward, his hand coming into contact with the sap string (which, as it turned out _was _disgustingly slimy). Then there was a whoosh as the sap retracted at lightning speed and catapulted Max high into the air, with Monica dragged alongside.

Fortunately they had a soft landing. Monica touched down with cat like grace. Max tumbled down next to her, clutching the side of his head.

"My ear!" he yelled "You pulled my ear off!"

"No I haven't- It's not that bad," Monica observed in a smug tone "besides, serves you right for annoying me."

Max got up frowning.

"I was only having a laugh. Besides, when you grabbed my ear I was only going to ask how we should get on the flower."

"Well it doesn't matter now because we_ are_ on the flower."

Max looked about and saw that they had been thrown onto one of the sail like lafrescia petals.

"Oh. So this is the top of the flower." Max confirmed.

"Hmm..." Monica replied, then added "actually it's kinda gross."

Max slowly nodded in agreement. The petals were alright, apart from the bubbling sockets which the sticky sap clung to, but the centre of the flower was a lumpy mass of vomit yellow plant flesh, from which tongue like appendages and a pungent stench emerged.

"Ugh, I can't imagine any creature being attracted to this." Monica complained as the wind blew the plant's scent in her face.

"Monica," Max said uncertainly, reaching for his wrench "I think the butterfly's coming."

Monica looked confused at Max, and was about to ask how he knew when she heard, in the distance, a beating sound. The steady, rhythmic beating of huge wings.

"Heck Max, how did you know it was com-"

Then the creature glided into view from behind the tree line. Even at a distance, floating over the canyon, it was massive, it's body like a stout oak and it's wingspan like a whale's mouth. It's wings were a delicate palette of silver white streaks and primary colours that flashed in the sunlight. As it approached, the two adventurers saw it's head held two spider web-cracked green eyeballs, a gaping mouth with dozens of long needle teeth and a pair of bright yellow antennae.

"It's coming this way!" Max said, drawing his weapons.

"Max what are you doing? Jurak said the butterfly wasn't evil."

Monica looked back towards the butterfly, just in time to see it's spectacular dive.

Both Max and Monica threw themselves flat as the creature skimmed the surface of the flower, stick thin insect arms waving wildly in an attempt to spear it's prey. It missed it's targets and glided away, while Max and Monica got back on their feet.

"Out of the blue!" Monica exclaimed "What did we do?"

"I don't know but it's coming back!" Max replied while aiming his one-handed wildcat machine gun.

The butterfly made another dive and Max pulled the trigger. The gun jumped and jolted as it fired volleys of steel capped bullets into the air. The butterfly careered wildly under the barrage and headed for a crash landing on the lafrescia. Max dived forward and slipped underneath the monster as it landed. Monica dived backwards so she was face to face with her attacker. She drew her sword.

The rainbow butterfly raised up the top half of it's body and stretched it's wings wide; typical animal reaction- maximise size to intimidate the enemy.

Monica raised her arms above her head and held her sword upside down so the tip of the blade pointed a challenge at the king sized butterfly. It lunged forward. Monica jumped to avoid the snapping mouth and came back down on it's head, using her own weight to drive her longsword into the insect's neck. The monster gave a strangled yell as Monica twisted the blade free and nimbly jumped back onto the flower. The butterfly attempted to fly away when Monica attacked it's face, but was stopped as Max began hacking at it's back legs.

"I think we've got it beat Max!" Monica called out.

The monster reared back as Monica shouted, then belched a gob of phlegm all over her.

There was a moment of shocked silence, then Monica shrieked in rage and disgust, and shouted a few obscene words before the butterfly attacked again.

Weighed down in the foul smelling gunk, Monica could do little to fend off the butterfly except jab her sword in it's face. The creature slashed at her with it's multiple legs, then began to lift it's body up higher. Monica attempted to move about of the way, but found her feet were stuck fast. She could do virtually nothing as her enemy moved to try and crush her.

The chatter of machine gun fire caught the rainbow butterfly's attention. It scuttled round to find the source of the noise, only to receive a face full of bullets, courtesy of Max.

That's when the wildcat ran out of ammo.

Max tried to bring his pistol to bare, only to find himself trampled under a crusty yellow body. He tried to roll clear but the insect legs trapped him like bars on both sides. Then the deadly insect mouth appeared, gnashing dangerously, trying to get a bite out of it's victim. Fortunately the butterfly's mouth was very soft and weak, making it easy for Max to squash it out of shape, but at such close range he couldn't swing he wrench with enough momentum to cause any damage.

Behind the chaotic mêlée, Monica launched a fireball at her feet. In a few seconds the spit had evaporated, leaving Monica slightly singed but free to rejoin the battle.

Max bashed the handle of his wrench hopelessly against the monsters head, unsurprisingly not having any affect. Holding the lipless mouth closed with one hand, he quickly reached into his tool satchel and jammed the first thing he found into the butterfly's face. It hissed in anger as the craft knife left a long but shallow cut down it's cheek, and started to struggle harder. Max used both hands to force the butterfly's mouth closed, but knew that if he didn't think of something quick he was going to get killed.

Then Monica was there, balancing dexterously on the monster's back. She raised her arms above her head, clasping a silver knife in her hands, and then plunged it deep into the rainbow butterfly's eye.

It thrashed and screamed in agony as a fountain of dark brown fluid squirted from the wound. It staggered backwards, trying to toss Monica from it's back, but she somersaulted away and landed back on the flower.

Max quickly pulled himself to his feet.

"Max! Think of something quick!" Monica shouted as she charged the butterfly and laid into the sea of legs, sword in one hand, knife in the other.

Max looked about for something he could use against the butterfly, and his eyes fell on the lumpy yellow centre of the flower. The tongues in the centre seemed to shy away from where the rainbow butterfly fought against Monica. As he stared at them, Max was struck by a brainwave. He took aim and fired the whole clip of his classic gun into the tongues, which caused them to rise up and start waving around in the air. As Max waited to see if it had any affect on the butterfly, football sized pieces of sun yellow pollen began to float out of the centre of the flower and began to stick to the wounds caused by the gun.

A sudden chittering drew Max's attention back to the fight. The butterfly had moved away from Monica and was waving it's antennae in the direction of the middle of the flower. Then it spread its wings and gently glided forward, passing straight over Monica, before settling down on the tongues, where it began snatching pieces of pollen out of the air with its mouth.

"Look Monica, now's our chance." Max shouted eagerly before charging towards the monster.

"He's mine..." was Monica's reply, in such a grim tone that Max paused to see what was wrong. He quickly hopped away from the butterfly when he saw what was happening.

Monica held her arm straight out in front of her, a massive fireball growing just above her elbow. Her eyes were narrowed in concentration, glaring at the rear of the giant butterfly. Her leather armlet glowed fiercely as it dragged more magic out of its dimension to increase the strength of the fireball. Then with a yell of anger, Monica sent the firey mass hurtling onto the monster.

The butterfly squealed in pain as fire spread across its back and over its thin, silky wings. The creature fell from the lafrescia tongues and writhed about as its skin began to blister and bubble and wide holes began to appear in its wings. In just under a minute, the once magnificent rainbow butterfly resembled nothing more than a giant yellow caterpillar, with a few blackened stumps of bone as the only sign that it ever had wings.

Monica stalked over to the wounded creature with hate in her eyes. As she stood over it, it looked up, one glittering green eye bulging slightly as it focussed on the young girl. Monica glared at the insect, then raised her sword and rested the tip against its head. She paused for a moment to memorize the sight, and then with a snarl she lifted her hand and swung her fist to hammer the sword down.

A third hand darted forward and pulled the sword away sharply. Monica looked up to see Max with a shocked look on his face.

"Monica, what are you doing?" he questioned

Monica blinked as her rage disappeared and she came out of her combat trance and back to reality. She stared back at Max for a moment, then said matter-of-factly "I'm killing the monster."

Max frowned, taken aback by Monica's off hand attitude.

"What's wrong with that?" Monica asked in genuine confusion.

"Monica, look at the thing. It's no threat to us and it's badly injured."

Monica looked at the butterfly lying at her feet, wings burnt to nothing and the left eye a ruined mess. She shrugged and said "Might as well put it out of it's misery."

Max was stunned. Stunned that Monica- impressive, intelligent, Monica- would talk like some sort of barbarian.

Ignoring the realisation that he really didn't know her, Max began to try and persuade Monica to be more humane.

Before he'd even opened his mouth the rainbow butterfly exploded into shimmering multicoloured light.

The two kids covered their eyes and readied their weapons, but then the light vanished as suddenly as it had appeared. They looked at the butterfly, except the butterfly wasn't there. In its place was the crouched form of a woman in a pea green coat and lumpy hat. She was panting as though she was exhausted, and her head was bowed so her face couldn't be seen.

"Thank you, young ones," the woman whispered softly "you saved me."

Max's heartbeat quicken.

"Are you the one they call Holly?" he asked.

"I am." she replied as she tried to stand up.

Max quickly ran forward to help the woman who could be his long lost mother. As he took her arms he vaguely noticed how unusually thin and cold they were, but he quickly forgot about it. The woman climbed to her feet, straightening her white dress and maroon apron as she did. Max leaned a little closer, trying to get a look at Holly's face, to see if it really was his mother. When she finally looked up, Max had a nasty shock.

Holly's skin was deathly pale and her eyes were blood red. She was an albino. Then Max noticed something else about her eyes. She was oriental.

An albino oriental, with golden blond hair spilling from under her hat, was defiantly not the woman that was Max's mother.

"Who…?" Max started to say, but stopped when he realised he didn't know what to say.

"Were you captured by the rainbow butterfly?" Monica took over.

Holly chuckled "No my friends. I, _am_ the rainbow butterfly."

It was an electric moment. Both Max and Monica were stunned silent by the claim, while Holly was content to smile kindly and stay quite while they processed the information.

"You mean..." Monica murmured "you used a change spell so that you could have human form?"

"That's right."

"But why did you disguise yourself to the firbits, and why did you leave them, and wh- hang on...why the heck did you attack us?" Monica became aggressive all of a sudden.

"I'm sorry for what I did. I do have an explanation, but it is a long story."

Holly sat down on the flower. Max, looking at Holly in suspicion, and Monica, glaring in anger, remained standing.

"Many years ago, like all creatures I was young and small, and looked almost the same as a normal butterfly. One day when I was still unused to flying, I got caught in a huge spider web. No matter how hard I struggled I could not escape, so I took a deep breath and resigned myself to my fate. At that very moment, some of the Firbit folk came by. They saw I was a very rare creature, and in spite of their beliefs not to disrupt the course of nature, they cut down the spider web. I was free! I flapped my wings with all my might and took to the skies. The Firbits were waving as I flew away. My seven saviours." Holly looked up and smiled at the memory, but an impatient cough from Max brought her attention back to the conversation.

"Well, as the years passed I matured and grew into a great rainbow butterfly, but I never forgot the Firbits or what they did for me. I wanted to do something for them. As a monster, I found I had many magical powers and was able to transform into another creature. I couldn't transform into a Firbit since there is no such thing as a female firbit, so I changed myself into a human and approached them. I only intended to stay a short time, but during the months I was with the Firbits, I found the feelings of joy and friendship I felt as a human were worth far more than the long years I had lived as a powerful monster. I found that I wanted to spend the rest of my life as a human in Sindain. But then something happened. Some unnatural dark power came to these lands, the same power that appeared ten years ago when the towns and cities of the world met with their fate. As its influence spread, many of the monsters in the woods became twisted and began to obey this darkness." Holly sighed sadly.

"Although I was in human form, I was still a monster, and it wasn't long before I too heard the voice of the darkness whispering in my head, telling to kill all living things. Fearing what might happen, I disappeared into the woods. I have been trying and failing to fight off the darkness ever since."

"So that's what this is all about." Monica said, humbled by the revelation. "What exactly is this 'darkness'? You're talking about Emperor Griffin, right?"

"When it first came to me, I used my powers to try and find out about it. All I saw was a vision of a dark cloud. The only thing I can tell about it is that," Holly shivered slightly "it was evil."

"So, when you were attacking us, that wasn't your fault, it was this evil power controlling you," Max concluded.

"Do not feel you have done wrong for burning my wings," Holly said with a sad smile "I attacked you like a savage beast, and the evil power would eventually have driven me to kill and destroy against my will."

"Isn't there some way to stop this evil from controlling the monsters?" said Monica, for some reason not being very apologetic about badly crippling the woman in front of her.

"Only by defeating it. Until then you must not let your conscience hold you back. I can tell you have misgivings about killing monsters that are under the control of evil, but the land, maybe the world is in peril. If such creatures stand in your path, they must be sacrificed for the sake that you succeed. Besides, it is not simply a case of creatures being controlled by the darkness. Not all the monsters you have faced are as innocent as me."

"What do you mean by that?" Monica frowned.

"I do not know any more. The only thing I can tell you is that you must leave now. Although you defeated me, the dark cloud is already beginning to fill my mind again." Holly looked sadly at the two kids. "I am too badly hurt to cause any harm, but soon I will once again be like a wild animal. I cannot go back to my friends until I know I am safe. Please," she pulled a deep red envelope from her pocket and handed it to Monica "give this to the Firbits; let them know that I'm alright."

As Monica took the letter, Holly walked to the middle of the flower and said "You must go now. I will help you down."

She opened her mouth and with a horrible retching sound she fired an absurdly large amount of spit into the heart of the pollen producing yellow matter. The lafrescia shuddered and began sinking to the ground.

"Go back now. Tell the Firbits that one day I will see them. I know that if anyone can defeat the dark cloud, it will be you, my saviors."

"Sure we will," Max said, punching his palm "We'll get rid of Emperor Griffin and stop his monster controlling power. Don't worry Holly."

"Thank you my friends, and good luck." Holly waved as Max and Monica headed back into the wood.

* * *

X

* * *

_**You may be wondering why I made M 'n' M have arguments in this chapter. Well, I was checking out the definition/history of fan fiction in an on line encyclopedia, and mention that one of the traits of Mary-Sue characters is that they have no faults. So, to make sure I don't get flamed by people saying 'Mary-Sue's suck!' I've made sure M 'n' M do have faults. Monica has a temper as short as an ants leg, while Max can be as annoying as a cactus in yer pants. That's all cleared up, so leave a review (it's your duty as a reader)**_


	12. Resurrection of the great elder pt 6

_**This WILL be the last part of chapter two. There isn't enough to write about that would make it 2 parts. And then w**__**e'll finally be on to chapter 3!**_

_**Ps. Sorry I didn't wait for you to beta Meg. Sorry!**_

**Dark Chronicle**

**Chapter 2: Resurrection of the great elder **

**Part 5- Not out of the woods yet**

The trip back through the forest was fairly uneventful, save for a few monster fights and a strange incident where they encountered a himarra who was crying his eye out, mumbling something that sounded something like " 'uman girl trick me."

Max looked at Monica in confusion, and was even more confused when she hissed "What!" before storming off in a temper.

Soon enough Max and Monica were back in Sindain, and in spite of the Carpenterion floating eagerly close to the ground both of them agreed that the first priority was to speak to Jurak.

It wasn't a moment after they'd walked through the time gate that they noticed certain differences from when they'd first been to the future. There were more huts than before, high up in the tree tops, many connected together by rope bridges. There was more activity on the ground; people walked about on personal errands or sat at the base of trees carrying out mundane chores. Over to the right the river was spanned by a wide bridge made of white marble, and although most of the people around were firbits there were also many other species; small grey skinned goblin like creatures, elves with pointed ears and fair complexions, humans of various races and even a few of the mysterious moon people, some with the hoods of their robes pulled up making their eyes glow ominously red, and some with their hoods thrown back so their rabbit ears waved freely in the air.

"Wow, this place is a lot more lively." said Max, spotting a trio of passing humans with enormous bags strapped to their backs "Who'd have thought that defeating the rainbow butterfly would make such a difference."

"If everything's gone smoothly, Jurak will be able to tell us why it made such a difference." Monica said as they came to the Jurak Mall. Instead of a flimsy signpost, the entrance was now marked by a tall stone arch, the name _'Jurak Mall'_ sculpted deep in the stone stretching over the path. On either side there was a large hut, each with signs saying 'Mall Management'. A few firbits with wooden staffs and bottle green uniforms were bustling around but took no notice of the two children.

The mall was far different from when they'd first been there. For a start it was at least four times bigger than before, and it was occupied by dozens of people of varying races and species who casually mixed together in a mass of buying and selling. There were a lot more stalls as well, each one with packed with knick-knacks and bits-and-bobs from every culture available. Some were cooking and selling food, the spicy, tangy and oily scents blending into one mouth watering aroma. Exotic and simple colours swirled together effortlessly. The stalls were bigger and heavier and fitted with harnesses so they could be pulled by horses, and many of the trees surrounding the mall had been dug out at the bases to be used as shops just like Jurak. Jurak himself had also changed. He was even taller and wider than before and had grown some extra large branches, one that grew into the ground so people could use it as a stairway that led up to a new shop that had been carved into Jurak's trunk.

"_Ohhhhhh,"_ Jurak groaned loudly when Monica tried to speak to him. Some nearby people stared at the odd looking children in surprise when they saw they were speaking with the great elder.

"_Ohhhhhh, I remember." _The tree droned. _"I remember everything."_

"That's great," replied Max "but how have we made such a difference? All we did was fight the rainbow butterfly."

"_The rainbow butterfly came to attack us maaaany times over these long years, under the influence of evil. It can be a veeeery dangerous creature if it chooses to harm others. But you destroyed __its wings. Without the power of its wings, I found the strength to force it back into the forest from whence it came, even while I was so young. And now I remember. I remember about," _Jurak's voice darkened _"Griffin."_

"You do?" Monica spoke up "Then please, tell us everything you know about him."

Jurak's eyes blinked slowly and he said _"Griffin does not exist in our time." _He groaned, deep in thought. _"He only shows up in the memories of our distant ancestors. From what I remember he hates humans, but he likes flowers."_

"Flowers?"the young adventurers exclaimed together.

"_Yessss. This Griffin is a strange creature. It is as though there are too sides to him. One side that is a terrible being which we hate and fear- the other, a mysterious person who has some... important purpose."_

"What's that mean? What purpose does Griffin have?"

"_I don't __quite know the details. These memories are soooo old. Griffin came from veeeery long ago, in ancient times. He is sending some strange, otherworldly power into the present, and is controlling a lot of things"_

"So Griffin's world is that of the distant past." concluded Max

"Well where and when can we find Griffin?" Monica asked.

Jurak groaned again, eyes slowly opening and closing. Max and Monica (the latter looking incredibly impatient) watched in silence as the great tree thought carefully. Eventually the elder opened his eyes wide and took a deep breath.

"_I'm not really sure."_

Both Max and Monica made an exasperated sigh. Monica had to hang her head to hide her anger.

"_You might want to ask Crest."_

"Crest? Who's Crest?" Max asked quickly.

"Crest the Great Sage." Monica said quietly "The greatest and wisest of all of the sages in my era, and with the Moon Crystal she can use incredible astrological powers, and can prophesise almost anything."

"That sounds good. So where can we find this Crest?"

"The Starlight Temple of Argentum City. But the temples origin point in Balance Valley has been destroyed. If we want Crest's help we'll have to go back to your time…"

"And restore Balance Valley." Max completed.

"_Sounds like a plaaaan."_ Jurak rumbled, earning a surprised look from the two kids for the unusual choice of words.

"_Here, you might be able to use__ this."_ Jurak began to aim his gigantic nostril. Max's eyes widened as the infinitely dark hole pointed at him. The huge sneeze came quickly and an object zoomed out of Jurak's nose, luckily hitting the ground in front of Max rather than Max himself.

"_This is called the Jurak gun. It's made of wood, but it __uses a very powerful laser. Use it wiiiisely."_

"Hey, thanks Jurak." Max said as he inspected his new weapon.

"Come on Max, let's go." Monica pulled Max's arm and headed back to the time gate. Max holstered his gun and turned to follow, but was startled by the small crowd that was loitering to see what was going on. He eyed the people warily, but seeing Monica stride past them with ease, Max quickly caught up with her.

"We better speak to the firbits right away to see if they'll help us restore Balance Valley." Max said before glancing back at the gradually disbursing crowd. "I hope that isn't going to happen everywhere we go."

"If you ever face a crowd, just act cool and walk by without speaking." Monica advised absentmindedly. "I learnt it from my father; he was used to crowds."

"What d'you mean by that?" Max looked round at the mention of Monica's father again.

Monica suddenly seemed to realise what she'd just said. For a second a sad look crossed her face, but she quickly recovered to a cheerful smile.

"It doesn't matter. Come on, we've got work to do." Monica quickened her pace slightly.

"Monica," the young mechanic sighed as his young amazon companion got further ahead of him "you're such a mystery."

* * *

The gloomy faced Firbits sat silently in the Carpenterions cockpit, watching Conda unfold Holly's letter.

After using Monica's Atlamillia to return to the past, her and Max went straight to the Firbits, where they told them that Holly couldn't leave the woods because of the dark power that had turned the monsters evil (it was close enough to the truth). Fortunately the Firbits were too saddened by this news to ask how a power directed at monsters could affect a human.

When Conda had unfolded the thick parchment he began to read aloud.

_My dear friends,_

_I am sorry that I have left you so suddenly, but there are reasons I can no longer be with you anymore. I think you may already have an idea why. I will miss all of you, and I want you all to know that the time I spent with you were the happiest days of my life._

"Holly…" sobbed one of the unnamed Firbits.

_Stay happy and healthy my friends. You will always be in my fondest memories._

_Holly._

Conda folded the letter quietly, while the others began weeping.

"Holly," he groaned in despair "Why did yer go an' do sumthin' so stupid? Why not tell us you're the rainbow butterfly an' let us help yer?"

"WHAT!" Monica exclaimed "You knew all along that she was a monster?"

"Of course we knew. We could tell she wasn't human just by her scent. It wasn't difficult te work out what she really was." Conda took off his glasses and rubbed his damp eyes with the back of his shovel like hand. "When we knew the monsters 'ad been turned evil we feared Holly had fallen under the same spell. That's why I tried te convince ye that Holly had been taken by the rainbow butterfly. I'm sorry for all the deception I put yer through."

The pair of adventurers frowned, but at the site of seven Firbits crying their eyes out, even hot tempered Monica couldn't bring herself to feel angry.

Eventually they calmed down, and Conda stood up.

"Max, Monica. I've been thinkin'. It seems te me that if we want te help Holly, the only thing we can do is te get rid of the curse on the woods. And from what I've 'eard, you two er' goin' after the one whose responsible. So, will yer let us come wit' yer?"

"You want to come with us?" said Monica.

"Aye; if yer planin' ter do anythin' that might help Holly, we want a part in it. Besides, I'm thinkin' we owe yer for all the help you've given us."

"That's great!" Monica smiled widely. "And in fact there is something you can do to help."

* * *

Soon enough, Max and Monica were climbing aboard Blackstone One while the Carpenterion began heading to the next destination, swooping low to grab at trees, stones and any other materials that could be used to rebuild the world.

The train was still a bit faulty, and jerked sharply as the people on board stumbled to take their seats as it rumbled through the featureless Sindain station.

Most of the town's people were in the two hastily repaired sleeper carriages at the back of the train, so Max and Monica pretty much had the front observation car to themselves.

"Well that was a successful trip." Max said as he leaned back in his seat and watched the view from the window whip past, too fast to see properly.

"Yep, we did a good job there." Monica sat in the seat across from Max. "It's a shame Jurak couldn't tell us where to find Griffin though. The longer we take on this journey, the more chance we'll end up facing soldiers from Griffin's army, not just rogue monsters."

Max paused for a moment while the lights in the carriage automatically turned on as the sun began to set. Then he said "Well, if we do meet any of those soldiers we'll take care of em'. We make a pretty good team."

Monica smiled.

"We sure do. By the way thanks for helping me when I was trapped by the butterfly. If it weren't for you it would have crushed me."

Max looked very pleased with himself as he said "Hey, no problem. Guess this means we've even after you stopped Flotsam from blowing me up."

"Oh no you don't pal!" Monica laughed. "Right after you distracted it the butterfly tried to eat you, and I had to save you again. So you're still in my debt I'm afraid."

They laughed gently, though both knew that the other was truly grateful.

"By the way, I noticed while you were fighting that you only have that wrench as a close range weapon. I think you're going to need something else if you want to get though this in one piece."

"You think?" Max said, rubbing his chin, remembering how close it had been when he tried to use a craft knife as a weapon. "What do you think I need?"

"Well, I think it would be useful if you had something like this." Monica reached down to her ankle and pulled out the knife she had used in the battle on the lafrescia flower. Up close, Max could see it wasn't just a knife, but an extremely ornate silver dagger. The oval shaped blade was three inches long and one inch wide at the thickest point, and it was completely smooth and sparkling except for several unrecognisable symbols, possibly letters from an ancient language which had been carefully engraved in the metal and filled in with dried ash. The hand guard was plain and thin, and would only cover a small part of the wielders hand, but it seemed very firm. The handle was also silver, but an elegant black rope had been twisted round it to provide grip, and the bottom of the knife had been capped with a piece of ivory. Max knew he'd never seen anything so beautiful in his life.

'_Except perhaps the girl in front of me.'_ said a small voice in Max's head, surprising him for a moment.

"I could defiantly do with one of these." Max said as he carefully took the knife and looked at it more closely.

"You sure could. It's not just perfectly balanced and weighted." Monica smiled knowingly "That writing on the blade is a blessing to Fortuna to bring good luck, and the knife is made of light-silver, so it's unbreakable and has purifying powers against demons and ghosts."

"Wow. This is some knife." said Max. "Where did you get it? This is like something that royalty would have."

Monica's smile became a little fixed for a moment. She stayed quite for a moment, then she leaned forward and said "Keep it."

"What?"

"Keep it Max." Monica unstrapped the leather sheath and held it out. "I think it's just what you need."

"Monica, I can't take this from you. It's far too valuable."

"I want you to keep it Max," Monica said firmly "as thanks for agreeing to help me with my mission."

She pushed the sheath into Max's hand.

"Honestly, you don't know what it means to me having someone helping me like this. I just wish I could repay you more."

Max shifted in embarrassment and said "Hey, it was nothing. I mean, I would have done the same for anyone who was in trouble or needed help."

"True." Monica said with another knowing smile "But it was _me_ who you helped."

Both were silent. Max because he wasn't sure what to say; Monica because she didn't have anything else to say. It was an apprehensive moment. Thoughts ran quickly through the kids heads. Thoughts focused on the person in front of them. The moment ended when Cedric appeared in the doorway.

"Well, we're well on the way to Balance Valley." the old mechanic said calmly. "You two lookin' forward to it?"

"Guess so." Max replied.

"Good. By the way, Max. There's somethin' I wanna ask ye."

Cedric cleared his throat and then…

"WHAT IN TARNATION DID YOU DO TE STEVE?" he roared like a grey haired lion. "HE LOOKS LIKE YOU DROPPED HIM OFF A CLIFF! I LET YOU ALONE WITH MY GREATEST INVENTION FOR A FEW MINUTES-"

Cedric continued to rant and rave at Max long into the night, while Monica looked on in thinly concealed amusement.

* * *

**And so, our adventure in the forest came to an end.**

**Holly, the mysterious women who was lost in the woods wasn't you mother. But for some reason I wasn't surprised. I think I had always known that I'd find you at the end of our journey.**

**With the train repaired and our path clear, we set our sight's on Balance Valley**

**

* * *

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_**X**_

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**_

Four months till update. What can I say? Sorry…..

_**Anyway, give me a review all the same, and while you're at it I've made some slight changes to the last chapters so feel free to look at them again**_

_**SPG inc.**_


	13. The Sage who became a star pt 1

_**Chapter 3 at last. It was worth waiting for!**_

**Dark Chronicle**

**Chapter 3: The Sage who became a star**

**Part 1- Balance of power**

The condor was perched delicately on the edge of the mountain range which stretched a good three kilometres across the coast. Facing inland, the gigantic golden feathered avian shuffled his talons on the rocky seat, only a few meters from the ground, and pecked absentmindedly at the arch shaped hole at the base of the mountain.

The great bird knew he wouldn't find any mountain goats or charging rams to eat in there; the creature was a monster. The basic difference between animals and monsters was that despite both breeds having primal instincts, monsters had magical powers and/or high intelligence. In the case of condors, they had no magic but were very smart. Not enough to speak but enough that it could work out things in a way regular birds couldn't. For a start, the condor realised the thing approaching steadily towards him was not alive.

The four rectangular objects moved and groaned like the ocean but were obviously made of metal. It was also apparent that it was of no danger to the condor, as it seemed it couldn't lift itself from the two long metal sticks that came from within the tunnel and lay against the ground for as far as even the condor's eyes could see. The tunnel and the sticks had seen no activity for as long as the colossal bird could remember, but he recognised that metal was sure sign of humans, so whatever was approaching had to do with them.

And that _was_ a danger to the condor.

The fact the mountains were unstable was obvious to even the stupidest of monsters. The condor tales of the birth of the great mountains (though they weren't tales in the way that a human would think of them) always spoke of the human intervention being the dark age. First came the volcanic eruption that lifted the edge of the coast high out of the sea's reach when the world was young. Then as centuries passed, earthquakes and storms ripped the earth down to a height more acceptable to mother nature, leaving only the solid bedrock high enough to form the mountains, the rest worn down to cliffs only a few hundred metres high. But then the humans had come, using magic and science to hollow out the mountains, stealing precious earth minerals and redirecting an underground lake to supply their dwellings in their artificial valley. Even the cataclysm ten years ago hadn't prevented the damaged caused by humans, though it had destroyed all the humans themselves. The valley they had once lived in was structurally unstable down to the foundations, and pieces of the mountain crumbled into to sea almost every day.

So the condor was well within his rights to be wary of the metal construct approaching, and with a contemptful glare at the object, the mighty bird took to the skies.

* * *

"Holy smoke! Look at the size of that dang thing!" Donny hollered as the condor's wing span blotted out the sun.

SNAP!

"I see it Donny. I've got enough pictures for both of us."

Max and Donny took a step back from the safety rail. They were standing on the roof of the observation car with Monica, everyone else having gone below before they entered the tunnel.

"Hope there's some shots for me too. Those condors are all extinct where I come from." Monica called over the howling wind.

"Well let's get back inside and I can print some off before get to the station"

Max's camera had been subject to a lot of interest that day (mainly because of the scene when Cedric tried to break it in retaliation for the damage to the ridepod). Made by Max himself, the camera could not only take, store and print several pictures at a time, but could also be used to blueprint new inventions with a simple computer. Max had already designed himself some strong walking boots to replace his worn out, slime and gore encrusted shoes. He just needed the materials to build them.

He was already running out of paper because his was the only camera on the train that could print pictures instantly and everyone wanted a souvenir of the outside world, but there was still enough to make three copies of the flying condor before they arrived at the underground station.

Blackstone One coasted the last few metres into Balance Valley station. Unlike Sindain station which had turned out to be little more than a small wooden platform and some sheds, the underground station was more sophisticated. The platform was carved straight out of the rock and was still in good condition despite its age, and there were still benches and ticket offices, although they showed signs of disrepair, wood rotting and metal rusting. Water dripped in steady rhythms from a dozen stalagmites and small lizards scurried about the place, squeaking in protest as magic torches burst into flame upon sensing the arrival of a train at the station.

"Wow! They built a whole station in this cave." Max stated as he stepped onto the platform.

"The people who lived in this valley built all their mining operations under the mountains too." Monica said "The valley itself isn't very easy to build on. You'll see why when we get there."

"Well you guys better get goin' then, huh?" Donny hopped over the gap after Monica "An' while you're out there try an' get some cool shots with that camera. We could make a fortune selling great scoops to people."

Max smiled

"I'll see what I can do." he tilted his head so he could look past Donny's huge hat "Is Cedric coming?"

"Nah, an' good thing too" Donny grimaced "He's still complaining about that stupid robot you busted up. Says he's not coming off the train till he's fixed it."

"Well we better get out of here before he changes his mind and comes after Max again." Monica laughed. "We'll send word when we know it's safe up there."

"Don't worry red; we'll be watching out for you." Erik drawled as he sauntered over from the engine.

"Er," Monica's face darkened but she kept her temper in check "Right. Sure. Max let's go."

The two quickly made their way past the broken disability lift to the stone steps and began to climb. The carpet of pebbles and bones of small creatures was a testament to how long it had been since there had been a civilisation to use the station.

At the top of the steps the cave opened out under a large overhang of rock. Balance Valley stretched out dead ahead of the adventurers. They quickly moved out from under the cliffs shadow so they could see clearly.

There was a surprisingly small amount of land. There were two large ledges jutting out of the walls of the valley; one which Max and Monica stood, another one directly across from them on the opposite side with a canyon leading out of the valley. Between the two ledges were four pillars of land, standing on their own like islands in a sea of empty air. What looked like an eighty foot drop below was a raging lake, fed by large springs that erupted furiously from the side of the valley.

Max looked up. The mountains loomed overhead, shrouding Balance Valley in eternal shadow, stunting the growth of trees and turning grass yellow. Max regarded the valley with grim dislike. The only experience he could compare to was a time when he'd fallen down a pit in the zelmite mine in Palm Brinks.

* * *

**That was one of my worst memories from when I was young. Father had taken me into the mines to show me what goes on in the family business. I was only six, barely a year after you'd left, and I still hadn't**** gotten used to the idea you'd gone, and Father was more short tempered back then (I think he probably still missed you too). I quickly got fed up and Father quickly got mad, and I ended up running off and I fell into a hole. I still feel kinda sick when I remember it. It was too deep for me to even see over the top, so it was pitch black and totally silent. I thought I'd never be found.**

**In the end it was Cedric that**** found me and carried me out (he was a mine engineer back then. I still think that incident is why Father let me work for him) but since that day I've always been afraid of small spaces. In fact the only reason I'd made it though the sewers of Palm Brinks was because I was so shell shocked from being attack so many times.**

**I hope you don't think me and Father disliked each other, Mother. We love each other, of course we do, but we just found it hard to get on, especially after you went. I expect you're wondering how we got on after all this happened. Well, I guess you'll have to wait because there's still lots more I've gotta tell you.**

* * *

"This is going to be difficult." Monica frowned "Those pillars are really unstable. They actually get lower when stuff is built on then, and if all the islands aren't kept at the same height they'll collapse."

"Wow! How does that work then?" Max asked.

"The islands should have fallen long ago. The people who live here had magicians cast force charms to hold them up. If we're gonna build this town we'll need someone who understands magic to renew the charms regularly. Anyone on the train like that Max?"

Max considered. There was Rufio the rabbit/moon person; he had a natural grasp of magic. Then there was priest Bruno who was well known for his knowledge in magic artefacts and rune stones.

"There's some people who could do that," Max nodded "but there doesn't look like a lot of land to build a whole town on."

"The Carpenterion won't be able to build inside the mountain. We'll just have to build what we can and hope the rest will develop over time. The only thing we need to worry about is how we're going to do this without knocking the whole place down." she looked at Max "I was hoping that with your knack for inventing you might be able to plan how to do this."

Max shrugged doubtfully and said "Dunno. I guess I could try. Where should we start?"

"Well first of all we should try and find Crest." Max raised his eyebrow but Monica explained before he could ask. "Apparently Crest was born in this time, but her connection to the moon crystal massively extended her lifespan, so we may be able to find her right away. Let's start with that house over there."

Max looked to his right where Monica pointed and saw a small wooden house built against the side of the valley. Unlike the Firbit's hut, the house seemed perfectly normal, apart from the fact it was the only one in the valley. There was no sign of anyone around but the two adventurers approached.

A sharp rap on the door by Monica seemed to prove there was no one in, and finding the door was ajar she entered, followed closely by Max.

As soon as they were inside there was loud rustle, the sound of a wooden object being knocked over, and then something round and brown dived of their heads.

"Ooo, intruders! Monsters! Get out, get out!" someone shouted as the thing lashed out with little claws.

The two kids ducked under the assault, but Monica's short temper quickly made an appearance. Unceremoniously using the blue Atlamilla bracelet like a gauntlet, she leapt up and hammered the flying assailant into the ground.

"OW! What on earth was that for, you wretched cad?"

"A talking owl?" Monica asked disbelievingly.

Yet that's exactly what it was. A particularly plump brown owl with a cream crest, flapping furiously on the floor.

As they watched, it opened its beak and words smoothly rolled off the bird's sharp tongue.

"_Owl_? How dare you? I am no mere owl. _I_, am the familiar of Crest, keeper of the lighthouse and guardian of the moon crystal."

Their ears quickly picked up on that.

"Crest's familiar..." Max said hopefully "So you must know where we can find him."

The owl's feathers fluffed up aggressively, and it said "And what if I do know something about Master Crest? Why should I bandy words with a pair of ruffians like you?"

Monica scowled.

"Look, owl, we haven't done anything except walk into this house. You tried to attack us first, and quite hopelessly at that. And we haven't come to this dump to find Crest just to pass the time of day. We're here for a good reason."

Even Max felt a bit taken aback by Monica's aggressive response, but he quickly intervened.

"Listen Mr... owl," he tentatively helped the bird onto its talons "we're sorry we scared you. We don't mean any harm. We're investigating how the town that used to be here vanished, and we need Crest to use the moon crystal to help us."

The owl looked up at Max, and in spite of the feathery features, the young boy could see sadness in the bird's eyes

"Crest is dead."

The owl flapped its wings and glided over to a chest of drawers at the back of the single roomed cottage, where he sat with his back to Max and Monica.

"Barely two days ago he went through the starlight canyon to the moon crystal lighthouse. The next day my spiritual link with Crest was broken. Crest and the moon crystal have been destroyed."

"The moon crystal? You saw the moon crystal _and_ Crest destroyed?" Monica asked in horror.

"I didn't see it at all." the owl began trying to pick up its fallen perch. "Lin came staggering back here and told me."

It looked down to its right. Next to the drawers was a small bed, and in the bed was a young girl who looked to be a little older than Max and Monica. Neither of them would had noticed her if she hadn't been pointed out. She hadn't moved or made a sound since they came in, and she was almost completely hidden under thick blankets.

Max went to her, immediately concerned by her sickly complexion and laboured breathing.

"Who is she?" he said.

"Crest's apprentice. She's been with Crest for years. She was so traumatised by what happened that she collapsed barely seconds after she told me what happened."

The girl was quite pretty in spite of her obvious ailment. Her nose was small and delicate, her skin was mildly weather-beaten and her teeth were pearly white. However, her most striking feature was a shock of bright purple hair, separated into two big pigtails either side of her head.

"She looks real bad," Max said "Monica, go back to the train and get Doctor Dell. I'll see if I can do anything."

"Who's Doctor Dell?"

"He's the guy who looks like a duck. You'll find him quickly."

Monica frowned and said "Max, we don't have time for this. We need to try and restore the moon crystal."

"We can't just leave her like this. We have to try and help."

Monica moved to stand next to Max.

"We wasted enough time in Sindain yesterday." Monica said angrily as she glowered at Max. "If Crest is dead and the moon crystal's destroyed, we've got to investigate more to see if there's another way to restore them. Our mission is too important to put on hold for one sick person."

Just like when Monica had tried so callously kill the crippled rainbow butterfly, Max was stunned to see the second half of his new friend's personality; from a fun loving, supportive young girl (albeit a tomboyish one) to a ruthless, uncaring swordswoman. To even think that she had such an unpleasant side to her character made Max's blood boil.

"Monica," Max turned so he could face Monica, and made sure to very calmly, but very firmly.

"The reason we're doing this is to help people. You told me you came back in time because the people in the future have been erased and need to be restored. I'm doing this because my whole world has been destroyed except for Palm Brinks, which is overcrowded and has suffered ever since we lost contact with the outside and the mines shut down." Max felt a twinge of guilt as he neglected to mention that he also wanted to find his mother, but he knew he had to press his point home. "If we're going to do this we're not going to leave someone to their fate because it's inconvenient for us to help. _I'm_ going to help Lin. If you want to go on without me that's up to you."

"Well said that man!" hooted the owl.

Monica quickly back down, unused to someone responding to her temper in such a way. She looked away from Max with such a pained expression on her face he almost tried to apologise.

Before he could say anything, Monica muttered "I'll...get the doctor." and scooted out.

Max breathed deeply. He'd have to try and make up with Monica lately. But right now, Lin was the priority.

As Max reached for Lin's neck to check her pulse, he suddenly was struck by an old memory.

* * *

**Lin really seemed to be in suffering Mother, but when I saw her like that I couldn't help but remember when you nursed me while I was sick.**

**I was only four, but I remember saying "Mother am I going to die?"**

**I expect you were more worried than you looked, but you smiled and said "Don't be silly. Of course you won't die. You'll feel better soon."**

**I remember someone near where we lived had got sick and died recently, so I was convince I was would die as well. I remember I ended up saying "It's too late. Get the priest."**

**And then (this still makes me laugh) you said "Don't worry sweetheart, you'll feel better soon. Anyway, it's the priest's day off, so if you don't hang on a bit longer you won't go to Heaven."**

**I think that sitting up and shouting "What! That stinks!" actually helped me, but I calmed down again when you laughed about it.**

**That's one of the things I miss most about you. You have such a happy laugh. Even when I was young I remember that people seemed to laugh or smile whenever they heard you laughing. Even father when he would come home and exaggerate about what a hard days work he'd had.**

**I was desperate to find you, but I knew you'd want me to help others if I could rather than ignore them in my search for you.**

* * *

"You done staring at her Max?" said a gruff voice.

Max broke out of his memory induced trance and turned around, involuntarily jumping as he came face to face with Doctor Dell.

Hideously deformed from birth, the doctor's skin was chalk white all over, except for his jaw which was yellow with dead skin and jutted out of his face beyond his nose, making him look vaguely similar to a duck. As a result, Donald Dell had been intrigued by medicine all his life, and was easily the best doctor in the town of Palm Brinks (which technically speaking made him the best doctor in the world since Palm Brinks was the only town left in it).

"I'll take over from here." the doctor brushed Max aside, as usual displaying the bedside manner of a town executioner, and set about diagnosing Lin.

"What were you up to Max? Monica asked. "When we came in you just seemed to be staring at her."

"Er, well nothing really. I was thinking."

Monica nodded and looked at the floor, her expression unreadable. Max expected she was brooding on their argument, and went to speak but was cut off by the doctor.

"Not good," he said "She seems to be suffering from a dangerous toxin. A few more days like this and we'll lose her.

"A toxin?" Max asked "Are we safe from it?"

"Monica explained to me what happened. I'll bet the only reason she was so susceptible to infection was due to trauma, but we can hardly give her counselling in this state. If she can't recover naturally she's done for. This toxin only started appearing about ten years, and all we know is that regular medicine won't touch it."

"But, there must be something you can do?" Max asked desperately.

"I'm sorry, but it's a hopeless case." was the grim reply.

"Bah! Halfwit! Nincompoop! Fine doctor you masquerade as, you wretched waste of s-" Crest's familiar began to shout.

"There is something we can do." Monica suddenly announced.

Doctor Dell seemed unsure whether to be shocked by the owl insulting him or affronted by Monica challenging his opinion.

"In my time there's a legendary chef named Lao Chow who lives at the Starlight Temple. They say he can make miracle dishes that can heal people who are badly ill." she looked at Max "If we restore the Starlight Temple, starting with Lao Chow's bistro, we can get something to cure Lin."

"Rubbish!" huffed the doctor "How can there be such a thing as a food that cures any disease? If you've got any sense you'll help to make this girl's last few days as comfortable as possible." he then turn back to Lin, shooting a suspicious glance at the owl.

"Max, if we work together on this I know we can save Lin." Monica said softly. "Will you help me?"

Max looked at Monica. She gave him a small smile; a request to be forgiven. Max smiled back, almost joyful for Monica's change of heart (and secretly because she hadn't decided to go on alone after all).

"Sure I will partner. Let's go!"

* * *

X

* * *

_**Sorry 4 the delay, but it's here now. So please R 'n' R**_


	14. The Sage who became a star pt 2

_****_

**_My faithful readers. I regret to say this will be the last chapter of Dark Chronicle, on account of the fact I'm killing myself from writing it…_**

_**By the way. Only joking; just making sure you're paying attention!**_

**Dark Chronicle**

**Chapter 3: The Sage who became a star**

**Part 2: Venturing into the memories of the past**

The blow came fast but she checked it with her sword. The midget creature hopped back, knowing it didn't have the strength to match his assailant. Holding his knife point down, the blue skinned, bat eared warrior rushed forward and swiped its blade rapidly. The girl simply held her sword in his way so the knife scratched off it and sent sparks showering about them.

The weekdayz (or 'smiling fairies' as they were more commonly known) were not monsters as they didn't have primal instincts. Monica knew that meant they were soldiers of Griffin's army. She snarled in anger as she knocked the weekdayz back with a shoulder barge and hacked down at his head. She had lost too much time since she began her mission, and was now paying the price, starting with the ambush by six smiling fairies and a charging ram on a lead.

The forest had been bad enough, having to solve the mystery of the firbit's disappearance and then the search for the rainbow butterfly. At least then it was necessary to complete her mission. Now she was on a wild goose chase to help a sick girl, possibly at the cost of countless people in the future.

Only the memory of Max's anger stopped her from abandoning Lin and concentrating on trying to restore the moon crystal.

She hadn't meant to sound so blunt. She was desperate to act; to make up for her helplessness when her kingdom had been attacked. If only she could explain to him how much she'd lost, it might be different. But she wasn't prepared to do that. Max had been dragged into her fight far too much already. But the look in his eyes when she'd said the moon crystal was more important than Lin had been...disturbing.

She assumed that since the mission to restore the world had been appointed to her, Max would follow her lead. But instead he'd made it clear he was determined to do the right thing (as he saw it). Admirable, but didn't he realise that in war, sacrifices had to be made? Apparently not. Monica knew she should continue her quest without him, even though he had the red Atlamillia. But she couldn't.

Monica gritted her teeth, ashamed at her own weakness, and decapitated the smiling fairy with a powerful swing.

She had to except that she couldn't bring herself to go on alone now she met Max. Not just because she was she linked to him by the Atlamillia; they saved each other's lives, learnt a lot about each in a short time, and Max was the only person who had made her feel...

'welcome', since she arrived in this time. She'd already endured enough loss, and couldn't bring herself to give up her only companion.

So Monica controlled her temper, and her impatience, and delayed her mission for what she considered to be a completely selfish purpose; staying with Max. She felt guilty for what she was doing, but the knowledge that Max would be at her side when she returned to her important task lifted her heart slightly.

She stamped on the chest of the last weekdayz in her path and turned to help Max, who was trapped in an alcove in the cliff by the last weekdayz and the savage ram. A single fireball was all it took to set the beast's stormy grey fur aflame. The ram wheezed like a pig, dropped its club and ran over the edge of the path they were on, down to the rapids below. Max quickly defeated the final enemy by piecing its head with the drill bit on his wrench.

"That was a close one." Max panted as he wiped a strip of cloth on his wrench.

"They were soldiers of Griffin's army. We're going to have to move faster. The longer our mission takes the more of these guys we'll meet on the way."

Monica turned away and headed further down the path, berating herself for having another dig at Max about how long they were taking. When she felt him walking next to her, she was expecting another threat of going on without her.

"I'm sorry I got mad at you back at Crest's house." he said, surprising Monica. "It's just that, when I left Palm Brinks I didn't think I'd be trying to save the world. But I am, and I don't want to start turning my back on people who need help. Don't you see? People are depending on _us_. I know that without you I won't stand a chance, so I want us to be able to work together." Max stepped in front of her slightly and held out his hand, saying "Truce?"

Monica looked at his hand, considering her response. She was touched by what he'd said about needing her help, but she had to decide how best to respond. Should she say the Starlight Temple needed to be restored and go her separate way? Should she try to convince him that Lin wasn't the priority and he had to help save the moon crystal? Or should she stay with Max and work to his agenda after all?

She didn't get the chance to answer.

The visibility in the Starlight Canyon was terrible. The sides of the canyon weren't as high as Balance Valley so there was a little more light, but the pathways were so low they were barely a dozen metres higher than the river. Thick spray flew everywhere, making every rock dripping wet and preventing anyone from seeing clearly. Max and Monica were already soaked though, and couldn't hear each other unless they were practically shouting over the roar of the waters.

Out of the blinding, deafening, water soaked pathways of Starlight Canyon came a yo-yo barrel.

It appeared to be a wooden box balancing on two tiny red wheels, each decorated with a large yellow star. The whole thing was tipped forward, balancing on two larger wooden limbs that were jointed in the middle and each rolling on a barrel like wheel, decorated in red with a yellow star.

"So, you vant to save the Starlight Temple, eh?" came a rough, high pitched voice. On top of the contraption sat the driver, who resembled nothing more than two floating gloves, a small top hat and a balloon with a face drawn on it.

Crammed under the magical beast's hat was a geostone.

"Then you'll half to get past _meee_!" it shrieked with glee.

The machine began trundling forward. Monica immediately hurled a few fireballs at it, leaving steaming trails of evaporated spray in their wake, but they merely smouldered and went out as they struck the machine.

"It's coated in fire proof stuff." Max warned her. "Leave this to me."

Max darted forward and drew the Jurak gun. The yo-yo barrel stopped dead as Max stood in front of it. He raised his new pistol and aimed it at the magical creature that was driving, when suddenly the barrel wheels at the front where thrown out to the sides of the machine, extended on long chains. Before Max could recover from the surprise, the yo-yo barrel span towards him, swinging the barrels like a propeller. Max disappeared as the war machine swept over him like a vortex.

"Max!" Monica yelled, but there was no reply, and then she needed to worry about herself.

The yo-yo barrel was fast. It hurled one of the barrels along the ground, forcing Monica to jump aside as it threw up clouds of dirt. She stumbled as her feet came precariously close to the edge of the shear drop.

Monica dropped into a crouch, getting ready to leap aside again. She planned to try and lure the blasted machine over the cliff and into the river. I was risky to let the geostone go over the side as well, but after several hours of travelling through Starlight Canyon she was in no condition to fight such a large enemy on her own.

The balloon driver threw the gears to full power and charged Monica. She held her ground till the huge wheels were within arms reach, then she rolled to the right and chucked a fireball at the ground. The earth quickly melted into a small patch of mud.

As the yo-yo barred tried to turn the left wheel slipped in the mud and the whole thing toppled over the edge. Monica grinned at the sight, but one of the barrels suddenly flew back onto the pathway and dug into the ground with retracting spikes. The chain on the wheel snapped taut, and as fast as it had fallen, the yo-yo barrel hauled itself back up the side of the cliff.

Back on level ground, the wheels began spinning vertically,coming down like a deadly waterfall over and over again. Balancing on the two small wheels it charged again. Monica braced herself.

There was a bright green flash from behind the machine, followed by an explosion of green and yellow flames. The yo-yo barrel scattered into a dozen pieces. Monica stared in confusion, and as the smoke and spray cleared she saw the explanation she was looking for.

Max was flat on his back, obviously dazed but alive and well, still aiming the Jurak gun at the place previously occupied by the now broken machine.

"Max!" Monica bounded to her friend's side."Are you alright? That was amazing! I knew that gun must be powerful, but man! Did it really cause that explosion? It just ripped that thing to pieces. I'm glad you're alright though. When that thing ran you over I thought you were done for. Man, that so cool!"

Monica babbled excitedly on for a few more seconds before she calmed down and helped Max onto his feet.

"Uh, how did I survive that?" Max asked, still looking very dazed.

"Guess you had a lucky break..._again._" Monica smiled as she remembered her previous joke about Max and his 'super luck'.

"Seriously, I can't believe that gun could be so strong. It blew the yo-yo barrel with one shot."

"It wasn't the shot that did it." Max shook his head and tried to concentrate. "I shot at a fuel line poking out of the back."

"A fuel line? How did you manage to target a tiny little fuel line after being run over and aiming upside down while lying on your back?" Monica asked with disbelief.

"Lucky break." Max grinned.

Monica frowned for a moment, but then grinned back.

"Alright lucky guy, I think it's about time we went back to the valley and used some of these geostones."

"About time!" a gruff voice came out of nowhere, startling the pair of adventurers until they realised the voice was coming from the radio that Donny had given to Max.

"We got fed up 'anging round waitin' for yer," Conda's voice squawked over the radio "so w came to see what yer was up to."

Both Max and Monica looked up. High above, obscured by the mist they could see the shape of the Carpenterion gradually descending.

"Hop on board and we'll give yer a lift back to the valley. And one of yer get hold of that stone yer just found."

* * *

The Carpenterion only took five minutes to get back to Balance Valley when the canyon pathways had taken half an hour (not including the various battles). While the creating machines reactor greedily consumed the collected geostones, the two adventurers decided to take a break for lunch.

"You know, the food people eat is this time is kinda weird." Monica said as she inspected the apple she'd just bitten. "Everything tastes a lot more...simple."

Max, who thought the food was fine except for the firbit's moss soup (which he'd been forced to taste by Tollbo) said "Why's that?"

"Probably because we have to put a lot of anti pollutants and pesticides in our food. It's strange, but compared to this time, my time seems a little grim."

"Come on, it can't be that bad. The Jurak Mall looked fine. I'm kind of excited to see what a city in the future looks like." Max looked over at the door leading to the bridge of the Carpenterion. "That last geostone must be important if that...thing was trying to protect it."

"Hmm," Monica replied as she carefully inspected a grape "guess you're right. We were lucky that neither of us were hurt."

"Well, he certainly won't cause us any more trouble. Which reminds me."

As Max reached down to his belt he said "I noticed that your magic didn't work on that machine, so I thought you could do with one of these."

With that, he held out an unusual, but fine looking brass pistol with a small funnel on the end of the barrel.

"Wow, that's a strange looking gun." Monica took the gun from Max's hand "It kinda looks like the barrel is made from an old fashioned telephone."

"Well, it is." Max grinned sheepishly "I not very skilled at making weapons, so I made this using some of the faulty stuff the firbits made. But don't worry; I tested that thing carefully and it'll work fine."

"So that's why you were away so long when you went to make those new boots of yours." Monica looked up. "But you didn't have to go to all that trouble for me. You could've just given me that classic gun."

"Nah. That's Donny's, and it's ancient. This 'bell trigger' gun is way more powerful and accurate. Besides, I felt I owed you something decent for that knife."

"Thanks Max." Monica smiled.

They enjoyed a moment of comfortable silence, then Monica said "By the way. There's something I've just remembered too."

She sat forward on her chair and grasped Max's hand which was resting o the table and held it as though they were shaking hands.

"I agree with what you said about us working together. If we don't, we haven't got a chance. I'm sorry for the things I said before, and I'll try and be a little more patient"

Max blinked, then gave her a small smile.

"Thanks Monica. I knew I could rely on you."

Monica instantly blushed and moved back, folding her hands in her lap and staring at them determinedly.

Max stifled a laugh (once again thinking she look really cute when she was embarrassed) and added "I'm sorry too- for threatening to go on alone. I wouldn't do that after all you've done for me. If it weren't for you I'd still be wasting my life away in Palm Brinks."

"That or you would have been killed by monsters a dozen times over." Monica grinned cunningly "Although from what I've heard from the townspeople I doubt you're capable of wasting your life unless you've, like, completely revolutionised your home town. Donny says you're a better inventor than Cedric."

Max chuckled, knowing that Donny only ever said that when Cedric was in earshot to try and irritate the old engineer.

"So we agree then? We're both gonna work together on this?" he asked.

"Sure thing."

Into the comfortable little conversation, a much harsher voice chose that moment to get involved.

"If ye two'd stop fillin' each others 'eads with all tha' crap we cu' doo with sum 'elp 'ere!" a particularly aggressive firbit with blue clothes and an extremely large dark ginger beard barked sharply.

Predictably, Monica responded just as aggressively.

"Hey, don't lose your temper at us! We're taking a rest, can't you see?"

"Well while ye sittin' doin' darn well nothin' we bin' slavin' away for you's wit no break nor food fer hours, se why don't ye ge' off ye backsides an' do ye share a' work?"

Monica looked close to exploding, but fortunately Max was quick enough to defuse the situation.

"Look, I'm sorry that you've had a lot of work to do," Max said, keeping his voice firm but steady "but we're also been working hard and we're only taking a short break. And will be over to help you in a minute, so there's no need to lose your temper, okay?"

"Hmm," the angry firbit calmed slightly at Max's words. "Alrigh' then. Ye both come yonder sharpish though. We gutta' problem we needs sortin' out."

"Okay, we're coming." Max assured, then while the grumpy firbit began walking away, tactlessly added "keep your hair on."

"I TAKE NAH BLEEDIN' LIP FREM YU LAD, SE WATCH YE TONGUE!" he hollered.

The small man continued to growl and sneer as he left, while Max went back to the table to get his things.

"That little runt had no right to say we're slacking off." Monica hissed as she glared at the door as though expecting him to come back for more. "After all that's happened; he dares to say that? I ought to..."

"I know; he was completely out of line." Max agreed. "Next time it happens though, maybe you should... be a bit calmer about it."

"What's that 'sposed to mean? After all we're done for them; after all the effort we've made you're happy to let that guy come down here and shoot his mouth off at us?"

"I'm just saying there's no need to get mad about it. We need these guys help if we're going to rebuild towns so we don't want to argue with them. Plus it's easier to deal with someone like that if you don't lose your temper, else you'll get nowhere."

"Perhaps you have a point," Monica grumpily agreed "but either way, I won't let him speak to us like that. If he so much as-"

"I know Monica," Max interrupted gently "but there's no point being as bad as him. Let's just see what they want up there and you can save your temper for the next monster we meet."

Monica turned her stern gaze on Max. Then she took a deep breath and said "Alright, you win. I won't get angry with firbits."

Max nodded and led the way to the ladder which went up to the control room of the Carpenterion.

As he began to ascend the ladder, he heard a mutter of "I feel sorry for the next monster we meet."

Max frowned, but said nothing.

* * *

"Yer see, the thing is," Conda explained as the two kids stared blankly at the progress of Balance Valley "we weren't entirely sure where to start buildin', what with the plateaus bein' so dodgy."

Many different structures had been built, but they had all been stacked on the narrow ledge where the entrance to the station was. Crest's house was completely concealed by the wall of buildings, and those few people from Palm Brinks who had come up from the station to see the valley were pushed into a tight corner.

"Haven't you done anything?" Monica asked.

"We put up a few bridges. But every time we try to build somethin' the whole place starts shudderin'. An' with what yer said about the whole pace fallin' down if there not all balanced, we wondered if maybe you had any ideas."

"Well... Max. You have a creative mind. Any ideas?"

"Er..."

"Well," said Conda "the geostones say that there needs to be a priest, a cook, an art-ist an' a sheriff livin' 'ere. Now a hear there's people like that on yer train so we don't need to worry 'bout going back to yer town for more."

"That's good. But we still need to build this town. To be honest I don't know what to do. I only ever saw the Starlight Temple once, and it looked totally different from this. Maybe we co-"

SNAP!

Monica stopped talking and both she and Conda looked to where the sound of a camera shutter had come from.

On the right side of the room, Max had commandeered one of the computer banks and had crudely linked it to his camera with a thick cable.

"Max?" Monica moved over to him "What are you doing?"

"This Carpenterion is designed to get information about Balance Valley from the geostones, and my camera can design things using the pictures it takes." Max explained as he worked "I haven't used many computers before, but if I can combine the two, maybe..." he trailed off into deep concentration.

Monica and Conda watched as Max work furiously with both the computer and his camera. After two minutes one of the firbits complained loudly that Max had just stolen all the information off his computer screen, but a hiss of _"Shut up!"_ from Monica kept him quite. Another thirty seconds later Max stopped working and watched the screen of his camera as it made multiple clicks and beeps. Then the noise stopped.

"YEAH! It works!" Max cried out, startling everybody and earning a few colourful words from some of the firbits.

"Take a look at this!" he said excitedly as he bought the camera over to Conda's control chair, practically tripping over the cable in his haste. Conda stood up in his seat and Monica leaned forward so they could both see what Max had come up with. On the screen were four 'T' shaped blue images with numbers on them, and at the top of the screen were little words in boxes, indicating the building which the firbits had built.

"The geostones already tell us how much weight each plateau can hold," Max explained as he pointed to the numbers "and your computers say how much each building weighs. So," Max pressed a few buttons on the side of his camera. One of the words at the top of the screen (church) moved so that it was above the first 'T' shape. The simple picture of the land island shrank down and turned red.

"You see? That means there's too much weight."

Another few buttons pressed and the word 'Church' moved to the third picture along. The first one changed back to its original size. The third one shrank down a little but didn't change red.

"Look! The third plateau can take the weight of the church. All we need to do is make sure the others get pushed down to the same height."

"Max, you're a genius!" Monica beamed.

"That's a nice bit'er work there boy! We can get this town built in no time!" Conda slapped Max on the back with one of his vast hands.

The building of Balance Valley began immediately. Along with the church there were several warehouses, dozens of brick houses, a scattering of rope bridges and an oriental take away stand.

Very few people seemed interested in living in the gloomy little valley. Most of the people who moved in were former miners who had worked in dark and damp places for so long they didn't mind the conditions. Ferdinand, the recently resigned chef from the Zelmite household eagerly agreed to take charge of the takeaway stand so he could experiment with eastern cooking. The moon person Rufio point blank refused to even get off the train as she wouldn't be able to see the moon from inside the valley. Fortunately, the geostones didn't say anything about needing a moon person to live there, and Father Bruno knew enough about magic to keep the force spells on the plateaus from dying out, and also fulfilled the criteria specified by the geostone of 'A priest must reside in Balance Valley'. After an hour and a half of hard work Balance Valley was almost completely restored, and Max and Monica decided they were ready to travel through the time gate.

* * *

Max remembered hearing that Balance Valley was in a place called Argentum City. Max had never seen a city before, but he was sure there should be more than this.

The four pillars which Max and Monica had helped to build on only a few minutes ago were eroded so that they were too thin to build even a single house on. Rope bridges connected them to each other and to four sides of the valley

The valley walls had also been badly eroded, meaning they were far smaller. At the same height as the four plateaus, ledges had been carved into the walls so they were like the ledge that the two adventurers stood on now. The ledge to the left held some small buildings; on the opposite side of the valley the ledge held nothing but a guard station at the entrance of Starlight Canyon, and on the right was a whitewashed building with steps leading up to a oval shaped door which appeared to be made of clouded glass. On the same ledge as Max and Monica were multiple tents of all shapes and sizes, housing hermits, monks, nuns and moon people.

Max turned around and saw that side of the cliff which used to contain Balance Valley station was gone altogether. A dusty trail led down a slight hill and ended at the edge of a field that stretched far into the distance. The field was almost completely flat for miles till they gave way to more hills. To the right the cliff tops became lower the further away they went from Balance Valley, till they reached a black sanded beach. In the distance a small fishing village was built at the edge of the sand. The only of sign of civilisation was something that looked like a ruined castle which was so far away, Max was sure it must be the future Palm Brinks.

The sky was a deep blue, almost violet coloured twilight. The fields were covered in light blue grass, almost exactly the same colour as the sea. Yellow green tumble weeds travelled slowly across the landscape. The rocks which made up Balance Valley were steel grey.

All in all, it was quite depressing.

"There's not much here." Max said, trying not to sound as unimpressed as he felt. He looked over at Monica when she didn't answer.

Monica seemed to be staring fixedly at the distant horizon. She was standing very stiffly, and her expression seemed to indicate some inner sadness. Max looked in the direction of her gaze but the only thing he could see was the ruined castle. He looked back at her.

"Monica, are you alright?" Max asked carefully as he reached out to tap her on the shoulder. She looked round quickly.

"Yep, fine!" she said brightly; perhaps too brightly to be believed.

Monica walked quickly to the rope bridge connecting There ledge to the ledge on the right of the valley, and said "Guess there's more to be done in the past to restore this place. Nothing we can do for the moment. Guess that means it's okay to put saving the world on hold while we visit an orient restaurant."

Max watched as she walked away, dumfounded by her bizarre mood swing.

* * *

**I just couldn't understand it. Monica seemed to change her personality in the blink of an eye. It was only at this point that I started to realise that something must have happened to her in her time.**** Something that she hadn't gotten over. Of course I know what it was now, but back then the only thing I knew was that I probably wouldn't be able to do anything to help. In the end there was only one person who **_**was**_** able to help Monica, but all I'll say for now is that I'd never had guessed it, and I doubt you would either.**

* * *

As luck would have it, Monica was distracted from whatever had upset her so much. Like Max, she'd never seen anything of the distant eastern culture.

The first unusual thing they noticed was the doors were made of paper, and slid to the sides instead of opening inwards. The second was the smell of the food being cooked inside, which was totally unique and undeniably delicious.

The walls inside of the bistro were covered in wallpaper with a remarkable complicated design, incorporating gold and brown swirling patterns. The floor was made of stone and a red plush carpet led down the small flight of steps at the entrance and up to the counter that separated the kitchen from the dining area. The tables in the restaurant were so low they were practically flat against the floor, and there wasn't a single chair in site. In place of chairs, each table had four large cushions lying around them.

Behind the counter a fat man with orange robes and a hat which looked vaguely like a chef's hat was scratching his long moustache in bewilderment.

"Ah, by the powers! What has been happening here of late!" he said in a high pitched voice.

"Are you Lao Chao?" Max asked as they approached the counter.

"Ah! My honourable customers!" the chef grasped his hands in front of his chest and gracefully bowed "Welcome to Lao Chao's bistro. I am indeed Lao Chao, chef of high renowned, but forgive me for we are not serving today, for something catastrophic has happened!"

"Well you'd better explain it to us then." Monica said. "I am Monica Raybrante," Monica held out her arm to show the Atlamillia stone on her wrist "and this is my companion Max."

"Raybrante!" Lao Chao adjusted his glasses and peered at Monica. "That means... you are Prin-"

"Yeah, no need for formality," Monica interrupted "You say something bad has happened."

"Oh, it has your honour- Starlight has been reduced to a dishonourable state. The moon crystal is lost, as is the great Argentum City. I still have the memories of when all of the temple and city existed, but now I also have memories of a different life I lived here- memories which lead to the poor state of this valley. I do not understand how I have these two different memories or what has happened to the temple."

"This is Emperor Griffin's doing." Monica explained. "We've only managed to restore some of Balance Valley back in the past. You still remember how things were, but now you have memories of the new timeline that we've created by restoring part of the past."

"Then, if I may ask, why have you come to the future when there is still work to be done in the past?"

"We're come here because we need your help." Max joined in. "Back in the past there's this really sick girl. She's been poisoned by a toxin and we need you to make something to cure her."

"Ah, a toxin." Lao Chao looked mournful "Alas, I fear I have nothing that will be able to cure a toxin, for they are notoriously resistant."

Max looked absolutely horrified.

"Lao Chao, I heard that you once made a dish called miracle dumplings that were capable of curing any type of physical problem. Isn't that true?"

"Ah my lady! It is true, but the vital ingredient for miracle dumplings is a white windflower. Her ladyship, the high priestess of Kazarov brought a single flower back from one hundred years in the past after she predicted the honourable Lord Agaris would fall seriously ill some years ago, but in truth the white windflower is extinct, having died out fifty or more years ago."

"Hold on. You're saying that the white windflower is extinct now, but existed a hundred years ago?"

"Yes my lady. It is said that the great condors who once resided in these lands would pollinate the white windflowers in the far south of the Starlight Canyon. But the condors have also become extinct, and in time the white windflowers were lost."

"That's it then!" Max said enthusiastically. "The condors were alive back in my time. All we need to do is search Starlight Canyon in my time and we'll find a white windflower."

"And while we're there we can look for more geostones to complete the Starlight Temple." Monica added.

With a quick goodbye to Lao Chao (which was answered with another graceful bow) the adventurers were on their way again.

* * *

X

* * *

_**At last another chapter. And now we're coming to the good bits**_


	15. The Sage who became a star pt 3

_***Creeps into the room as subtly as possible***_

_**So, the last update was on 12/05/08. That means 2 years since the last update.**_

_***watches as angry readers pull out assorted torture devices***_

_**Heh heh... what can I say; good things come to those who wait!**_

_**(please don't kill me)**_

**Dark Chronicle**

**Chapter 3: The Sage who became a star**

**Part 3: Heaven in a wild flower**

The condor flew hard and fast, followed closely by one of his smaller kin. In the distance the calls could still be heard; calls of fear and pain. Calls of battle.

There was a possibility that it was just a distant condor telling a story. Many times in the past dozens of condors had come flying in answer to a call for help, only to discover it was just someone telling an exciting tale too loudly.

Normally one of the smaller and faster birds would be sent to check everything was alright, but this time the huge condor had come as well. He was a flock leader, and now that that human thing had come to their valley, he was sure this was no false alarm. His strength would be needed.

Both he and the small falcon cleared the top of a knoll and Barga's valley was directly ahead.

Smoke was rising from within.

This was all the proof the condor needed. He whistled to the falcon who immediately turned around and went to summon the warriors who were already gathering. The condor continued on, determined to challenge any threat from the wretched humans. As he went he flew higher so he could see what exactly was going on before trying to help. When he could see down into the valley, he found to his surprise there wasn't a single human about the place.

Although the condors were being attacked, the attackers were a mix of three unlikely species. One was the rare grey skinned midget race that was seldom seen in these lands and was totally unknown for violence. Another was a fire spitting reptile breed of monster, all of which were somehow twisted into a violent frenzy by some strange dark magic which the condor's instincts easily detected. The last of the three types of creature was unknown. Shaped vaguely like a human and coloured red and black, it was some sort of artificial life form; an abomination of being created through alchemy or with conscious locomotion magic. But whatever they were and whatever they wanted, they had to be destroyed. Even as he watched, two more condors were overwhelmed and killed by a dozen of the red and black soldiers, leaving a nest of eggs completely undefended.

The condor pointed himself downwards and fell out of sky, heading straight towards the unknown warriors. He went so fast some of his feathers were ripped off and the pressure threatened to burst his eardrums. The ground approached quickly, expanding in the condor's eyes as though preparing to catch the falling bird with its merciless solidity. At the last moment he opened his wings and arched upwards, scraping the ground and ploughing a deep trench where the mysterious warriors were gathered. Numerous body parts were the only thing left in his wake.

Once clear of the fireballs being hurled from the reptile monsters, the condor turned about and noticed two very distressing things. First of all, in a massive spire shaped rock to his left there was some kind of unnatural power source. He couldn't see it, except for a red glow coming from a small cave near the top of the spire, but he could sense it. The power felt as though it was some sort of gap in the middle of normality, as though is presence was instinctively incorrect. It had to be something to do with the arrival of the invaders, and even as the condor watched another platoon of soldiers tumbled out of the cave and joined their allies.

The second distressing thing the condor noticed was in the opposite direction, at the mouth of the valley. As if things weren't bad enough, the condor's suspicions had been right all along. From the entrance to Barga's valley, two young humans were sprinting to join the fight.

* * *

Max and Monica had walked most of the way to the valley. The Carpenterion had taken them back to the place where they had defeated the yo-yo barrel. They went on foot not only so they could look for more Geostones (though they'd only found one so far) but so the Firbit's flying machine didn't disturb the notoriously territorial condors. The machine now hovered half a mile high and fifty feet back down the canyon in case it was needed to swoop in and save the two adventurers from the massive birds. In the meantime, it was gathering rocks and metal for building.

They had come to a crossroad in the canyon but had taken the left path since they had noticed many flying condors in that direction, while the other path led towards the sea. Their plan had been to find a condor roosting area and to sneak in to find a white windflower without attracting any attention. But the plan had changed.

As Max and Monica continued through the canyon they had heard many shrill condor cries. At first it seemed like a sign that they were on the right track, but soon they began to realise that the calls were wild and furious and not all of them belonged to the huge birds. When they saw smoke drifting through the sky they broke into a run.

"What's going on?" Max shouted to Monica as they dodged around a huge gemron lizard.

"I don't know," Monica shouted over her shoulder as she began to outpace him "but I'll bet it's Griffin's army trying to destroy more of the past!"

They continued on through the canyon. The river down below came to an end as they reached its source; another underground river flowing out of the rock. The deep drop vanished as the ravine closed up, making a single wide path. The two kids rounded a corner and found the source of the disturbance.

It was a scene of chaos. The path had opened into a wide valley with three massive rocks stretching skywards in the centre and a dozen or so wide, flat rocks scattered about. On the outside of the valley, there were bird's nests made from logs and stacks of straw, filled with enormous sandy coloured eggs. Throughout the valley there were birds, some no bigger than seagulls, others big enough to swallow a cow whole. Every one of them was engaged in battle.

"Griffin soldiers!" Monica exclaimed. "And dragons too."

Max could barely believe the scene of carnage before his eyes. The condors battled an entire army of mismatched creatures, snapping with beaks and slashing with talons, while the invading forces slaughtered any bird that came within range. There were clusters of smiling fairies, lumbering elephant sized dragons and strange humanoids that were presumably the griffin soldiers. The whole place reeked of blood, smoke, and ironically, freshly cut grass.

"Where did they all come from!" Max asked.

"There must be some sort of time distortion that brought them here." Monica said. She scanned the valley, ignoring the unfolding violence, then suddenly pointed and shouted "There!"

Max followed the point of her finger and saw that she was indicating a huge chunk of rock which rose out of the ground from the centre of the valley. In a cave just beneath the peak, Max could just make out a ball of solid black, bordered by a red glow similar to the glow of the time gates that led to the future.

"That's a time distortion. Griffin must have made it so he could send his troops here to destroy the condors." Monica explained.

"You think you can plug it?"

"No. The only way to close it up is to find the spheda and put it back in there."

"The what?"

"Spheda. It's a piece of time which has come out of place and manifested into a ball of matter. If we can put it in that time distortion, it'll seal it up."

"Well where is it?"

"It must be somewhere around here. Split up and look for it, but if you find it remember two things- One, it has to be the opposite colour of the time distortion for it be accepted. If you hit a spheda hard enough it's energies will realigned which will turn from red to blue or vice versa. If it's the opposite colour it will automatically be sucked in. Secondly, if you find the spheda, if you value your life, don't touch it with your bare hand. Use your wrench to hit it. Got all that?"

"Right." Max nodded as he drew his weapons. "Let's go."

They both charged into the valley, Monica heading to the left, Max to the right.

* * *

Max hopped over a small boulder, running aside just as a weekdayz staggered past, engulfed by normal sized ospreys that pecked and scratched at his face. He looked around wildly for the spheda despite the smoke that stung his eyes. He had no idea what the thing looked like, but hoped he would know it when he saw it.

All about him was the sight and sound of war.

Yes, this really was war. Max hadn't realised it before. Or at least, he hadn't truly understood or acknowledged what it meant. But now he did. There were dead bodies just lying where they'd fallen, being trampled underfoot by duelling warriors. Some distance ahead of him, a dragon lumbered back with a snarl of rage while a giant condor dashed forward on its clawed legs, hissing from its beak like a serpent, wings held high in an aggressive display.

Max allowed himself to stop for a moment to try and take it all in. He'd lived a quite, sheltered life within the walls of Palm Brinks. He'd never imagined it was possible for any creature to act in the way those around him were acting right now. Was it possible that human beings were capable of such savagery too? For a moment, as he stood in the middle of the battle, all Max could see was red.

Suddenly he realised he wasn't just seeing things. His vision was block by the blood red hide of a griffin soldier.

Max ducked, and not a moment too soon as one of the soldiers limbs chopped the air at the level where his eyes had been only a second ago. Max quickly surged forward and slammed his wrench into the creature's midsection to double him up. The red and black being rocked back but didn't go down, and it lifted its twin clawed hands in the air and brought them crashing down. Max rolled aside, dropping the wrench as he did. Quick as a flash he sprung to his feet and drew his pistol. The moment the griffin soldier turned to face him Max fired a couple of shots at the thing's head. Three shots hit the blank, pointed head but it seemed to have little effect on it. The warrior lunged forward and threw another handless arm at Max, missing again but clipping the hunting cap from the boy's head.

Max jumped back a step to get out of range and quickly studied his opponent. It was only when he did this that he realised there were two huge red eyes in the thing's stomach.

'_Its head is in its stomach!'_

Getting over his surprise, Max took aim again. The griffin soldier dived forward and clamped it's long, thin arms around Max's far shorter, outstretched gun arm. It held Max's right arm in place and glared at its enemy as it tried to aim its claws for a stab to the face. All throughout this the inhuman creature remained disturbingly silent, not a single deep breath or grunt of exertion to be heard.

The inventor from Palm Brinks realised what his adversary was trying to do and forced himself to think clearly of how to escape. Once he'd taken a moment to assess the situation, Max resorted to one of the martial art moves he'd learned back home.

Bracing his foot on the griffin soldier's knee, he suddenly flipped himself backwards and smashed his other foot into the creature's face, surprising it into returning Max's arm back to its owner.

Landing on his feet, Max dashed to his enemy's left, hoping to slip under the long arm and get to the fallen wrench. The soldier turned to grasp at the boy as he went by, but Max was ready, and a handful of sawdust he'd quickly dug out of the bottom of his tool satchel was scattered into the huge eyes.

The griffin soldier made a sound like a cat hissing in annoyance as it swung it's body around in a feeble attempt to shake the dust away, unable to reach the lizard eyes with such long arms even if the massive claws weren't an issue. Max made use of the opportunity to run by and get his wrench. As he bent over and grabbed the tool, there was a powerful thud, and Max was thrown forward by something. Further confusion was added by the sound of hissing and squealing coming from the griffin soldier.

Max rolled over to see what had happened, shoving his yellow bangs out of his eyes, vaguely wondering where his hat went.

Of the griffin solider, only a few messy remains could be seen. Where it had stood just a moment ago, the biggest condor Max had seen thus far reared up, spreading its wings to an impossibly wide length, while eyes with massive pupils outlined in gold looked down cruelly at the boy. The condor threw back its head and gave a long, powerful squawk, and then slammed its head towards the earth.

Max barely managed to get out the way as the rock hard beak left a hole in the mud. The giant bird bought its head up again and faced Max, none the worse for wear after banging it's head into the ground.

Faced with such an enemy, Max did the only sensible thing he could do.

He ran.

* * *

On the other side of the clearing, Monica was having more success than her friend. True, she was encountering more of Emperor Griffin's raiders, but with her superior swordplay and acrobatic skills, cutting through the ranks was a breeze.

She somersaulted over a pair of weekdayz, her sword humming as it created ripples in the air while she sliced the heads of the smiling fairies. The grey midgets survived, but ran in panic. Monica's blade continued to sing with every cut she made, driving off griffin soldiers, weekdayz and the occasional normal sized condor that perceived her as an enemy.

While she was satisfied with her progress through the valley, the young amazon was also concerned that she hadn't found the spheda yet. The longer the battle continued, the more chance there was of someone getting hurt, most likely her or Max.

The battle to defeat Emperor Griffin was going to be a long and difficult affair, and she'd only gotten so far thanks to the help she received from Max. Monica knew perfectly well that dealing with difficult people was something she was very bad at, and it was only thanks to Max's charisma that the Firbits and people from Palm Brinks had agreed to help to restore the world and do what they could to tackle the threat of complete destruction. Her abilities were more suited to dealing with obstacles, mainly by fighting her way through them. If they were tools, Monica was undoubtedly a sledgehammer, while Max was the scalpel.

Again, Monica felt frustrated with the current objective. Sure, stopping the time travelling army from ripping chunks out of history could only be good for her cause, but the fact remained that the reason for all this was Lin. All their efforts had been made in order to help one sick girl; a single life amongst countless others who were also at risk. She went along with the plan for now, because it seemed as though it was important to Max, but Monica was starting to wonder and what point she might have to put her foot down and insist that there were more important things to do than-

The ground shuddered and a large, violet coloured foot dropped down in front of the young woman. She looked up and found herself gazing into the blank red eyes of a bull dragon. It must have been at least four metres tall, and its bulging arms looked more than capable of folding her over backwards.

With a deafening roar the dragon took a swing at Monica, who sprang forward and rolled to the base of the reptile's form. Supposedly, the lighter coloured skin that covered the monster's belly all the way up to the neck was weaker that the scaled hide on the back. Yet as Monica thrust her long sword with all her strength at the dragon's gut, her weapon slid off the tough flesh and made it clear that the beast wasn't going to go down that easy.

The dragon kicked his left leg forward. Monica's breath escaped with an "Oof!" as the impact winded her and tossed her body back the way she'd come. The girl landed on her back and looked down at her body, not surprised to see some blood. The stubby claws on the dragon's foot had punctured the thin breastplate under her chunky vest easily. The wound was shallow; it could wait.

Monica leapt to her feet and dodged aside as the dragon made a punch at where she'd been lying. As the huge hand jammed itself into the ground, the adventurer charged past and hurled herself over the immense purple tail that waved furiously.

Monica ran as swiftly as she could while slipping by combatants without pause. She could hear the footsteps of the dragon pursuing, and more importantly, catching up. Hoping to slow the thing, Monica purposely got as close to her enemies as she dared, missing many a blow by the skin of her teeth. The huge reptile behind her didn't spare a thought for his allies, blundering into them without concern. The distance the young woman gained was minimal at best.

Monica glanced behind at the pursuer as she continued to think of a way to defeat it. It was a good thing she did, as she saw the beast had raised his head and was charging a magical fireball from his mouth. The girl dived to the left as the dragon swung his head down and threw the ball at her which opened out like an umbrella as it sped through the air.

Ignoring the certainty that the tip of her ponytail was smouldering, Monica jumped back on her feet, considering her opponent carefully. From the way the fireball had gathered in the air above the monster it was clear that despite popular belief, dragons didn't use a mixture of naturally occurring chemicals to create fire, and consequently may not be as fire proof as they appeared. She experimented by slashing her left arm rapidly through the air, a fireball leaping from her hand with each swipe. Three blazing orange orbs struck the dragon and burst against its flesh with a quick hiss. The creature twisted his lip into what look like a sneer, and to Monica's surprise a throaty chuckle came from within his throat.

The amazon raised an eyebrow at the towering enemy. It wasn't unknown for some monsters to have the same level of intelligence as a human but still act like an animal and not speak, but the dragons just looked too bestial to be anything but wild predators. She drew back her hand and began to charge a fireball for a more precise shot.

The dragon unfurled his wings in a flash and beat them once. The force of the air not only blasted Monica off her feet but also broke the seal on the fireball she was creating, allowing the compact mass of flame to spread out over her left side. A simple spell from the girl's lips dropped a small splash of water on the flames, dousing them immediately, but the fire still burned her limbs and hip badly. She grunted as she forced herself to bury the pain and get up again. With help from the massive wings the dragon had jumped into the air and was about to come crashing down.

With one powerful, magic enhanced leap, Monica sprang clear of the danger area just as the monster hit the earth with gargantuan force. Bits of flying mud obscured her vision; Monica focused all her efforts into directing herself towards the nearby rock spires, lest she fall smack into the middle of a crowd of enemies. She grabbed for the first solid object she could see.

As soon as she'd made a grab for the object, it was clear it wasn't made of rock. With a rush of fear, Monica realised she'd grabbed hold of the beak of a giant condor, and the condor wasn't happy. The bird clamped its beak around the girl and tried to bite her in half. Monica only survived because she managed to position her sword inside the creature's mouth at the last second and prevent it from closing its beak entirely without impaling itself. She doubted that would stop it for long.

As if things weren't bad enough, the dragon caught up. Charging headlong towards the condor, he rammed his horned head into the soft, feathery belly of the bird. The giant avian was shunted away, and Monica fell from its grip. Falling through the air, she again latched herself onto the first thing she encountered, this time the dragon.

The scaly beast became distracted from the wounded bird as it felt a human settling on his shoulders. Monica took a chance and used her position to try and harm the monster. She reached down to pull her dagger from the sheath on her ankle, only to find it wasn't there, only just remembering at that moment that she gave the dagger to Max. Before she could turn her sword to do the job, the dragon tossed its head and unseated the girl.

The young girl hit the ground, landing on her feet, and darted away before the spiked tail could take her head off.

Monica backed away carefully from the furious creature, trying to decide on a new strategy. She glanced over to the other side of the valley, hoping to spot Max. She hoped he'd endured the battle so far. If she'd nearly been killed, what state might he be in? But she couldn't afford to think about that right now; a distraction could very well be the end of her. Instead, she considered the help the boy might be able to provide in defeating the dragon. She certainly could use his inventive mind to come up with a solution to this problem.

While she didn't see her friend, she did notice something else; something that made her heartbeat skyrocket and filled her with hope.

"The spheda!"

* * *

The giant condor had turned out to be a partial blessing in disguise, albeit a very good disguise. The life threatening monster could easily kill Max with a single blow, but so far the beast had been distracted by dealing with the forces of Emperor Griffin, and they in turn were happy to ignore Max and swarm towards the giant bird in droves.

Max was currently crawling through the very bottom of a large scrum of griffin soldiers, weekdayz and normal sized condors and hawks. How they all got gathered into one big pile like that was anyone's guess. Max's plan to lose the gargantuan bird by crawling under the horde had failed since the monster simply started pecking at the mass, snatching enemies out the way one at a time as it tried to reach the target. It seemed to have taken a special dislike to Max and the snapping beak and squawks wouldn't let him forget it.

Coming out of the mass of bodies, Max found the condor bearing down on him again. The bird hovered above with its wings creating a fierce downdraft. The golden talons thrashed about, scratching the ground badly while Max rolled over and over to avoid being struck. The monster cawed in frustration and unexpectedly dropped out of the sky. Max quickly got a grip on the earth with his hands and feet and hurled himself out the way. Having evaded the falling mass of feathers, the boy once again went dashing for his life as the condor came stamping after him. Making his way to one of the nests that lay undisturbed, he bounded up over the edge of the log structure and fell inside, coming into contact with the eggs that looked and felt like they were made of cement.

Slightly dazed by the impact, Max was fortunate enough that the condor was reluctant to risk damaging the nest and spilling the precious eggs inside. Halting in its charge, the bird flew up again and drifted onto the side of the nest. Max saw it coming and ducked behind one of the rock hard shells. The airborne predator snapped at boy, who drew the Jurak pistol and fired twice. The laser beams burnt out on contact with the beak as though it were made of steel, but the condor became agitated by the flashes of light and flapped away. Another near miss, and Max was starting to worry that his luck quota for the day was running out.

The condor came back again, thrusting its head forward to overwhelm the intruder. Max dodged the attack again and dived out of the nest. He hit the ground running and began to head in the direction that he'd seen Monica go. Maybe she'd know a way to scare off the condor.

As he ran, he saw his female companion sprinting towards him from the other side of the valley. There was a dragon chasing her, but she didn't to being paying the beast any attention. She was shouting something that Max couldn't hear over the sound of the continuing battle and was pointing frantically to an area near the centre of the valley between the two people. Max looked to where she was pointing and stopped dead as he saw what it was. Lying on a patch of mud, being given a wide berth by every other creature nearby was a small white orb, slightly larger than a golf ball, which was covered in random shafts of red light.

The spheda!

Distracted by the sight of the object of his quest, the young inventor was taken by surprise by a smiling fairy that managed to jump up and wrap himself around Max's neck. The thing had lost his knife and was trying to harm his enemy by force feeding him a poison apple which Max easily knocked away. But while he struggled with the grey dwarf the giant condor caught up and dropped down on the pair. A geyser of mud and rock rose up from the point of impact, concealing Max's fate.

* * *

"Max!"

Monica blanched as her friend vanished in a tidal wave of earth, the fearsome condor in the heart of the cloud giving its sharp cry. Monica desperately wanted to go and try to help Max, but with the dragon coming up behind her and the sight of reinforcements exiting the time distortion, she had no choice but to worry about her own safety.

The dragon swung his arms one after the other, punching at Monica twice and nearly hitting her. A quick cartwheel allowed the girl to evade the attacks despite the pain in her burned limbs as the crisp skin was stretched till spider web cracks reached across it. She then countered, slashing at the monster's huge hands and leaving a few scratches, but they seemed to do little more than irritate the beast.

Monica made another attempt to escape the monster, trying to get to the spheda. It was a bad move, as the moment she got too close to the ball she was overcome by a wave of nausea that had her falling to her knees. The very nature of the unnatural object made it repellent to all normal things. Monica forced down the feeling that she wanted to be sick and turned to face the bull dragon that had surely caught up. But the dragon too had been affected by the spheda, and had fallen back with a smoky gasp.

The female warrior rose to her feet and moved until she was outside the sphedas aura so she could face the monster. The scaled creature had pulled back its head and was now charging another fireball so it could attack without getting close to the dangerous orb.

Thinking quickly, Monica lobbed a fireball of her own. Just like when the monster had broken the seal on the fireball Monica had been charging up, the two fireballs coming into contact with each other resulted in a cascade of bright yellow flames falling out of the air and down the dragon's mouth.

The dragon tried to roar in outrage but only managed a huge choke as his maw was flooded with fire. The huge predator wasn't fire proof and the flames had caused him a lot of pain in the throat, but he was tough and wouldn't be too long before the beast continued to attack, even more furiously than before.

Monica returned to the spheda, fighting off the sickness it induced. It was red, like the time distortion. All she had to do was hit it once to change it blue and send it flying towards the hole in time and space, sealing it up forever. It would be difficult to make the shot from that distance, but Monica had enough golf experience that she was confident she could manage it.

She swung her sword to take a swing at the ball, but then there was a mighty roar behind her. Turning back, she saw the dragon had overcome the effects of the spheda and was making his way towards her with murder in his blank eyes. Monica moved away with unsteady steps, nearly coming into deadly contact with the spheda.

'_Of course- the spheda!'_

Monica took her stance again and swung her blade at the circular object. It took off at surprising speed, for it was much lighter than it looked, and impacted on the monstrous hide. The effect was immediate.

Monica ducked as the spheda rebounded and flew over her head. The dragon was now roaring constantly, from pain, or maybe pleasure? The incomprehensible noises seemed somehow filled with emotion- with every emotion. Pain, fear, anger, joy, despair- a wild symphony of roars and growls of different tones and pitches echoed from the dragon's mouth as though it was howling from inside a cave. The huge purple body had elevated off the ground and was convulsing sharply. Different body parts began to transform, some aging till they withered and sagged horribly, others regaining their youth till they contracted to an infantile state. Then beams of white light began to emanate from the dragon's eyes and a wind that seemed to come from nowhere began to swirl around the monster. The chaos continued for a few seconds more as time had its fun with the beast, continuing to warp it, until finally it ended and with a flash of light the dragon vanished without a trace.

Monica stared at the vacated spot dumbly.

'_So that's why you should never touch a spheda.'_

The girl looked over to the orb and saw that it had come to rest near where the giant condor was still thrashing around and pecking at the earth around its feet as it tried to snatch more enemies. The piece of time was again the right colour to knock into the time distortion, but as Monica approached it she saw something that made her forget about the spheda completely.

Max was there, lying under the condor, and he'd been caught underneath one of the bird's legs. The huge, golden beak of the bird was busy dealing with smiling fairies, but twice the powerful mouth snapped at the boy and nearly cut his head off. How Max dodged those attacks was unimaginable, but it was clear his time was running out.

Monica didn't even pause to think. She abandoned the task of dealing with the spheda, jumping over the orb as her emotions drowned the sickness it created. Quickly reaching critical distance with the bird, Monica slammed her sword into its leg as hard as she could.

The colossal avian screeched and took to the air. Most of the nearby enemies scattered as the monster rose above them all, but there were still enough mindless griffin soldiers nearby to pose a threat, the creatures being merely drones who didn't understand the concept of fleeing when hopelessly outmatched.

"Max, get up, quick!" Monica urged as she pulled her companion to his feet.

"M-Monica!" Max said in spite of his crushed chest, courtesy of the condor. "Your arm's burnt. A-are you alright?"

Monica couldn't decide whether to flattered or exasperated that he was taking more notice of her wounds than his own.

"I'm fine, but never mind that. We've got to plug that time distortion and get out of here; it's too dangerous. Come o-"

Suddenly an eagle swooped out of nowhere and struck Monica on the head, sending her sprawling. The girl was quickly on her feet again, but was tackled by a griffin soldier.

"Max, get the spheda closer to the time distortion and try to knock it in." Monica demanded as she jumped up and slammed both her feet into the crimson warrior and pushed it back. She doubted Max could get the spheda into the hole in time, but she'd dropped her sword and until she could get it back she was unable to help.

* * *

Max wanted to rush over and help Monica, but the eagle had driven him away from her and now she'd told him to take care of the spheda, and she sounded really serious.

He dashed over to the orb and nearly picked it up on reflex, but remembered at the last moment that he'd been warned the ball was deadly to the touch. Instead he gripped his wrench in both hands and tapped the ball so that it bounced over the landscape towards the spire where the black hole resided. As Max looked in the direction of the spheda, he noticed with distress that there were considerably less birds than before, while the number of griffin soldiers, dragons and weekdayz remained the same due to reserves coming from the fracture in time. The birds may have thought he and his friend were enemies, but the young inventor didn't want to see them all slaughtered. It was probably this battle which resulted in them becoming extinct in the future. Even though the condors had attack him, he was determined to try and save the magnificent birds from the wrath of Emperor Griffin.

Max knew he didn't have a hope of striking the spheda into the time distortion from where he stood. He already had an idea to the problem brewing in his mind, but he was missing something.

There was a crash next to him as the giant condor returned to the fight. Max looked over as the giant creature landed to his right and let out a terrible scream of anger. Instead of looking shocked or scared, the boy actually smiled.

"Just what I need." he said.

The condor stamped forward and made to strike the young inventor. But Max anticipated the move, and quickly loosened a screw on the head of his smash wrench before sharply swinging it forward. The drill bit clamped in the teeth of the wrench came loose and flew into the condor's open beak. The condor choked and backed up as the foreign object confused it. Max made use of the opportunity and quickly grabbed the spheda with the wrench, locking the head in place so that it wouldn't let the orb go. He then straightened up and confronted the giant condor who had already recovered and was preparing for another attack. The bird's head darted forward again but this time, Max took a running leap and landed on the monster's neck.

The condor immediately exploded into frenzy as it bucked, flapped and tried to lose the unwanted rider. Max clung on for dear life, knowing that if he became unseated and hit a valley wall with the force that the condor was tossing him with, the impact would be lethal.

Throwing caution to the wind, Max swung his legs down the right side of the condor's neck, trying to direct it towards the time distortion. The bird readily complied as its head dipped forward because of Max's weight and had to move in order to regain its balance. Max could see the spire getting closer. If he could just position himself securely for a moment he could try throwing the coloured ball. But it was already hard enough, only being able to get a firm grip with one arm as the other was holding the wrench and trying to angle the spheda away from the bird's flesh to prevent any 'accidents'.

The condor went on hurling itself about to try and get rid of Max, and it was starting to move away from the spire. Max looked over at the time distortion and saw that it changing, expanding and then shrinking as it pulsated, its light becoming more intense, maybe signalling the arrival of more enemies. Max realised his time was up and took a chance.

He leapt from the condor's neck towards the pillar of rock. He knew he was too far to land on it, but he was at the right height.

Max grasped his wrench with both hands and swung it with all his might. The spheda came loose and rocketed towards the cave on top of the spire.

Max hit the ground hard and his legs folded under him. They didn't feel broken or anything, but he doubted he'd be running anywhere anytime soon. He looked up, ignoring the fact that he was surrounded by Emperor Griffin's warriors and was heavily outnumbered. The only thing he could worry about now was the spheda.

The little ball of time was heading too low, and was the same colour as the time distortion. There was no chance it could get sucked into the black hole.

Max felt a sense of despair come over him for a moment as weekdayz and griffin soldiers advanced, but then something unexpected happened.

Another dragon flew out of the time distortion. With its wings spread wide it swooped down to join the battle, right into the path of the spheda. As soon as the two connected, the unusually light ball bounced upwards off the creature's back and changed from red to blue. The dragon underwent the same insane transformation as the other one that had touched the spheda, but more importantly the spheda itself came close enough to the time distortion as it was sucked up into it and spiralled around as though it was going down a plug.

As soon as the ball reached the centre of the distortion, the hole in time turned into a blazing golden light, which then vanished with a rush of wind.

A short moment of silence filled the valley, and was quickly replaced by cries of panic from the hostile army. Dragons and weekdayz quickly drew away from combat, the former taking to the skies, the latter digging themselves into the ground. The griffin soldiers didn't seem interested in giving up the fight, but with the sudden arrival of a huge flock of more giant condors swooping into the valley to help, they didn't have much of a chance.

Max smiled as the adversaries around him scattered away and said "Super luck wins again."

* * *

In a matter of minutes the battle was over. The red and black soldiers were quickly destroyed and the others just seemed to vanish. That left the two teenage humans standing in Barga's Valley surrounded by several hundred condors, falcons, kestrels and other assorted birds of prey of varying sizes. The defeat of the strange army had somewhat pacified the flock, but the giant condor still wasn't satisfied while humans were in the valley. The fact that the boy had just rode on his back as though he were some insensible animal hadn't improved his overall opinion of the human race.

While the other birds glared on and squawked occasionally, the huge condor and local flock leader approached the humans.

"Monica..." the male nervously took hold of the female's arm to get her attention. The condor could smell the fear off him, pathetic creature.

The female also smelt of fear, but less so than the boy. She started conversing with him.

"Max," the condor heard her whisper easily "if they wanted to kill us they would have attacked already."

Stupid human. Their reasoning was so small minded. The flock's choice to assess the situation before making a decision on what to do didn't mean they wouldn't kill the intruders. Only a human would be barbaric enough to just kill others on sight without thinking about what they were doing beforehand.

"The condors are an intelligent type of monster, which means they have the same intelligence as us. They can't speak but they can understand us. Let's see if we can talk this over with them.

The bird glared with contempt at the pair of children. At least the girl was smart enough to somewhat understand the nature of the condors, but it was so typical of humans to try talking rather than fighting only when fighting was an obviously hopeless option. He knew he was just being cynical, but there was no point trying to give humans the benefit of the doubt; they'd just take advantage of it.

"Condors," the girl called out loudly "there is no need to be cautious. We mean you no harm."

Yeah right. Humans rarely ever _meant_ harm. It just came from them naturally.

"We came here because we are fighting a dark being known as Emperor Griffin."

Fighting? How typical. However, the name Emperor Griffin was something different. The name had been carried to them from distant flocks, as tales of some sort of creature who'd been responsible for a great destruction. While the same 'destruction' was believed to be linked to the disappearance of humans in the valley all those years ago, the name Griffin was still something that left a feeling of unease amongst those who'd heard the stories.

"Emperor Griffin was the one behind the attack on your home. We are searching for a way to defeat him, and his plans for the destruction of the world. We've come to this place because we urgently need a white windflower to create an antidote for a dangerous toxin, and we've heard that the condors pollinate these flowers."

The condor thought carefully about the girl's words. He didn't think she was lying, but since lying wasn't in the nature of birds he'd had little experience of detecting liars. He knew perfectly well what flower they were talking about. The same flower was eaten by condors to keep them free of sickness, but he was reluctant to do anything to help the humans.

However, that corrupt portal had come from somewhere, and the power coming from within it was certainly nothing that a human had the capacity to create. The closest equivalent to that dark power the condor could think of was the obscure stories he'd heard of the ancients and the affect their magic had on the world in the old times. That portal had felt like something out of place; something that was wrong in every way. And these two humans claimed that they were challenging this cloud of darkness that was the elusive 'Emperor Griffin'.

After some deliberating and discussion with the second flock leader (carried out through subtle eye movements) the condor relented. He wanted nothing more than to take these underage humans and feed them to the injured, but they seemed genuine, and if they were trying to stop this evil Emperor that had threatened the condors, he had to do what was best for his people.

Reluctantly, the condor lowered his head and revealed the little pure white flower that all condors kept on the back of their neck so that the flower's fertile seeds were spread wherever the birds flew.

"Hey, a white windflower!" the brash male said as he rushed forward and clambered up the condor's neck to get the plant. As soon as the flower had been plucked, the condor turned his head sharply and deposited the boy back on the ground.

"Way to go, Max." the girl said with humour before addressing the birds again.

"Thanks for the help, birds!" she said with an enthusiasm from her success that made her forget her place. "We'll get our Carpenterion to block the way into the valley so that no more of Griffin's army come this way. Great to be working with you."

The giant condor squawked and flapped his wings aggressively. The two children went scurrying from his presence, back into the canyon.

They'd seemed decent enough for humans. Maybe there was more to these ones than met the eye. The condor decided he'd have to watch them carefully.

* * *

X

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_**Seriously, sorry about the long update. As you can see I had been creating other fics in that time. But I have not given up on this. Updates will take a long time, but not as long as this. Thanks for reading!**_


	16. The Sage who became a star pt 4

**Dark Chronicle**

**Chapter 3: The Sage who became a star**

**Part 4: Rude awakening**

As Max and Monica crossed the bridges of Balance Valley, they took stock of their situation. Both were bruised and battered by their fight with the Griffin's army and the condors. The bullet wound Monica had picked up in the Sindain forest had reopened and the burns down the left side of her body were stinging badly. The cut in her chest wasn't deep but was too big to ignore for long. Max was wheezing slightly from when that giant condor stepped on him, and he was sure at least one of his ribs was cracked. Plus his cap was still missing.

"Monica, remind me never to try visiting condors again," Max groaned as he gently poked his chest.

"They can't help being vicious; it's in their nature," Monica said, not sounding in pain but simply tired. "They clearly haven't had many good experiences with outsiders. Now that the Carpenterion's built a reserve for them they should mellow over the years."

"I hope so. I feel like I've been hit by a train."

"Well if you feel bad now, wait till Donny finds out that you were standing in a giant condor breeding ground and came out alive but forgot to get a picture of it for him."

Max groaned.

"So much for getting a great scoop."

The pair of adventurers proceeded to the crimson coloured time gate, and swiftly travelled to Monica's time. Not much had changed visibly since they'd last been there, having not been able to change much in the past. Only one other building had appeared, this time on the left side of the canyon.

But what a building it was- midnight blue bricks stacked as high as Max's mansion back in Palm Brinks; a sweeping red slate roof overhanging the walls and pointing to the sky like a spire. On the peak of the roof was a cast iron wind vane, but instead of an arrow with a sail there was a sculpture of a planet with a metal ring tilted on an axis. Even from over the gulf of the canyon, sun-bright light could be seen pouring out of the two windows and open door, and sigils cut into the walls bled golden luminance that dispelled the twilight around them.

"Wow! What is that?" asked Max.

"It's the astronomy," Monica explained. "The Starlight Temple is dedicated to revealing the secrets of the stars, and the astronomy works that knowledge into many devices so it can be put to use. I once saw them using some of them during a lecture in collage. It was pretty cool, but the guy was such a loser 'cus he wouldn't let us try them as well."

"Yeah; well by the sound of it, all this stargazing stuff is like their religion so that's not really surprising."

"But I wasn't going to do anything irresponsible. I just wanted to reverse time to see if my hair looked better when it was short."

Max failed to come up with a response suitable for that. They made their journey over the chunky rope bridges, making the odd comment about how little had changed and what they could do about it.

However, when they got to Lao Chao's bistro, it became clear that something had changed after all.

"Ah! My honourable customers!" the chef's stringy moustache flapped around wildly as he bowed quickly, clearly excited about something. "You have managed to restored more of the past; memories of the new time line you created have come to me. You have my most immense gratitude!"

Before either of the young heroes could reply, Lao Chao spun towards a work surface behind him and then whirled back with something in his hands.

"Behold! As requested my lady, I have prepared these for you!"

In the chef's hands was a bowl filled with a trio of edible baubles resting on a bed of leaves. They looked like little sacks of batter or dough, tied at the neck with the thinnest string imaginable.

"Miracle dumplings!" Lao Chao explained triumphantly.

Max and Monica stared at the meal dumbly. Lao Chao didn't seem at all worried by the heavy silence, even when Monica looked up and glared accusingly at the chef.

"How did you make these! ?" she demanded.

"Ah, forgive me, but the secret recipes cannot be revealed to anyone who is not a culinary disciple of-"

"I'm not talking about that!" the red haired girl tensed her arms up and balled her fists in irritation. "When we last came here you said you couldn't make miracle dumplings. We've just come back from fighting in a huge bloody battle to get you a white windflower, and now you show us a bowl full of dumplings. Were you trying to get us killed, or just wasting our time?"

"No, no. Your mission was no waste of time. I could not create miracle dumplings because the great condors that pollinated them were extinct, but ever since you returned to the past your actions have led to a great change of events. Thanks to a sanctuary first built a hundred years ago the condors are now alive!"

The pair of young adventurers responded in shock.

"But, how could that be?" asked Max.

"That's impossible!" added Monica.

"And so I believed, but it's true. Though their numbers have dwindled the condors still number in the many, and the mountains are full of windflower fields. Come, look to the skies and perhaps you will see the condors in flight."

Lao Chao gestured towards a shuttered window. Both Max and Monica moved swiftly towards it and pulled the pair of wooden frames back. They'd only been watching for a few seconds when they spotted a shadowy form rise up from the distant mountain range. The undeniable shape of a condor was quickly accompanied by a slightly smaller bird, and the two giant avians began a mid-air dance with each other, either playing or mock fighting as they gently bumped into each other and called through the frigid air. They continued their flight together for another moment or two before they both separated and raced each other back down into some unseen valley behind the mountains.

"You see, my friends? The great condors have returned to us, and their blessing brings much honour and glory to the Starlight Temple."

Lao Chao moved back into his kitchen, jabbering to himself about the wonder of the returning condors while Max leaned over to whisper something.

"So, does that mean we've actually changed time?"

"More likely no one bothered to look very hard," Monica replied cynically, though she cast an uncertain glance in the direction of the mountain before she turned away.

"Well anyway, we have some miracle dumplings now so let's take them to Lin." Monica picked the bowl off the counter.

"Wait," said Max, "don't we have to pay for them or something?"

"Not at all!" Lao Chao gushed happily. "I would not dream of accepting payment from one such as Monica Raybrante, the-"

"Thank you Lao Chao; we're very grateful," Monica voice was quick and forceful as she bowed sharply to the robed man, stopping him from continuing. But Max was not so easily deterred.

"Monica," the boy asked curiously, "are you someone important around here?"

The look that Monica gave was defensive and even a little angry, but her reply was calm.

"I'm the warrior chosen to carry the blue Atlamillia in the war against Emperor Griffin, that's all."

"Yeah, but, the way people from your time have spoken to you and stuff is kinda-"

"It's not important."

"But-"

"Max!"

Monica's fierce exclamation forced Max to stop mid-sentence. He stayed quite, taken by surprise at the reaction. Monica, realising what she'd done, visibly composed herself. When she spoke again she avoided looking Max in the eye, and her voice sounded as though she was tired.

"Max, things have happened in my time that are difficult to explain. Things here are different than they are in your home town, but there's nothing about me you need to know that you don't know already. Let's just leave it at that."

Max couldn't deny that he felt more than a little hurt by this. He'd thought the pair of them had become close friends in the short time they known each other. Even though they'd only met just a few days ago they connected so well, and on the long train ride from Sindain they'd learnt quite a lot about each other. Now Monica was keeping secrets from him, and not just personal ones but secrets that were being clearly illustrated to him by the way people kept behaving around his companion. Max even felt a little bit of anger at the thought that Monica was being dishonest to him, and was about to insist upon more information until he remembered something.

His mother.

Suddenly, Max remembered that he was being dishonest to Monica about his reasons for joining her. Of course, now he understood what was going on in the world and what Monica was facing he was determined to be there to help her, but he couldn't deny that his initial reasons for taking part in this quest was the hope that somewhere out there he'd find his mother. He hadn't mentioned a word of his mother to Monica for fear of how she might react if she knew the truth.

With his mind filled with guilt and shame, Max banished any angry notions he had and said "Sorry Monica. You're right, it's none of my business."

Monica looked back at him, and slowly a sheepish smile crawled onto her face.

"No, I'm sorry. I should try to keep a cap on my temper."

Max returned the smile, but the moment was interrupted by Lao Chao.

"No no- I am sorry! It is my fault!" the chef flapped his arms frantically and looked up at the ceiling. "The carelessness of my tongue has caused a rift between two heroes of our land. Please forgive me!"

Lao Chao bowed rapidly to the two kids.

"I wouldn't really call that a rift," Monica ventured to their apologetic host.

"I have dishonoured myself and this establishment," Lao Chao went on, heedless of Monica's assurance. "I must make amends for this at once."

With speed belaying his portly build, the man scooted over and forced the pair of adventurers to a table with no legs, sitting them down on the cushions thrown around it.

"Please wait here my honourable customers. I shall bring you cuisine beyond your wildest dreams!"

Lao Chao zoomed away and vanished into his kitchen. The adventurers were left staring at each other from across the low table.

"Shouldn't we tell him there's no need for this and get going?" asked Max.

"Well, he's the one offering it to us for free, and if there's cure-alls like miracle dumplings in we could do with them after that last fight," Monica shrugged, then added with a grin "and besides, it does smell good."

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One meal later, and the two adventurers were able to testify both to the ability of Lao Chao's food to cure all injuries, as well as to its flavour.

"Now that," Max paused to smack a hand to his mouth as he hiccupped "was a real-meal."

"I hope that wasn't supposed to be a pun," Monica extended her Atlamillia forward as they both stepped through the time gate and returned to the old Balance Valley.

"I've never eaten food like that before, and when Ferdinand worked for my dad he came up with some strange things."

Monica nodded in agreement.

"I guess since just about everyone in the world was destroyed by Griffin, you wouldn't have had anything like that in your town," Monica looked in the direction of the Chinese takeaway.

"Good thing some cultural elements were saved in the geostones too."

Max frowned and said "Restoring the whole world isn't going to be easy. There's so many different places with different ways of life. I sometimes wonder if we really can restore the whole world."

"Sure we can, Max," Monica stated. "If there's a will there's a way, right? Once people start living in new places they'll adapt to them. All we need to do is make it possible for them to start new lives in new lands. First though, we've got to find the moon crystal lighthouse."

"No," corrected Max, motioning to the bowl in his hand. "First we've got to give Lin the cure for the toxin.

Monica paused mid step, the smile on her face slightly frozen as her mind fixed on the subject of their recent dispute. She covered up the glitch though, and said "Sure thing. Let's go."

They continued to Crest's house in silence.

When they got back to Lin, the two kids were greeted by a cry of "Hoo, hoo! How did it go?" from Crest's familiar.

"We've got the miracle dumplings for Lin," Max presented the bowl to the owl.

"Yeah, and they smell delicious," added Monica appreciatively.

"Hands off! Those are for Lin!" barked the owl.

"I know that! I was just… never mind."

Doctor Dell was nowhere to be seen, so Monica took the bowl and began to cut up the miracle dumplings, while Max took up the task of feeding small pieces to the still unconscious Lin. It wasn't easy as once open the bags would spill there colourful, good smelling ingredients everywhere. However, after battling with giant butterflies and condors it wasn't a particularly daunting task, and by the time two of the foodstuffs had been fed to Lin she began stirring.

"Did it work?" asked Max.

The purple haired girl groaned and looked up. Her eyelids fluttered open to reveal grey/green orbs.

"Lin, how are you feeling?" ask the owl.

"W-what happened?" she asked, her voice like wind through a field of grass. "Who are these people, Argo?"

"These to travellers came here to help you Lin," responded the owl. "Thank goodness you're all better!"

"Something's wrong," Monica said quietly. Max looked to his companion and then back to the young witch. He couldn't see anything wrong. He went to question Monica's comment, but Lin spoke first.

"Has Master Crest gone off for training?" she asked in her husky whisper, wide eyes reflecting confusion. "Why didn't he wake me?"

"Lin, don't you remember about master Crest?" queried Argo.

"Looks like she's lost her memory," Monica concluded.

Max looked at Lin with the same expression as the disorientated girl and said "How? Why would that happen?"

"The miracle dumplings only cured her physical ailment. She must be traumatised after seeing what happened to Crest."

Max looked on as Lin spoke with Argo, asking what had happened to Crest, laughing at the absurdity when the owl said that it was Lin who'd told him that Crest was dead. Max was totally out of his depth. His knowledge of technology and engineering was absolute, and he could understand technical glitches and faults, but his understanding of mental complexities was limited. Monica quickly explained it to him, but the idea that Lin's mind had made her forget what happened to protect her from it was bizarre, and downright unnerving.

It didn't take long for Lin to realise that the situation was no joke, her amused confusion melting slowly into a corpse like grimace.

"You told me yourself Lin," explained Argo. "You and Crest had gone to study at the moon crystal lighthouse, but that day a warship appeared and fired on the lighthouse. Crest lost his life trying to defend you and the moon crystal. He was a brave man and a great mage. You must have seen all of this; you came back here in tears and told me before you collapsed."

Lin was now standing before the cottage dinner table, gazing blankly at the surface with her back to the others.

"Master Crest," she whispered, before suddenly clapping a hand to her head in pain and gasping.

"Ah!"

"Lin, what's wrong! ?" Max darted forward to help, but Lin held out a hand as soon as she sensed him approach.

"No. I won't believe it. My master's not dead."

Argo fluttered onto the table in front of Lin and said "Lin, I think in the very depths of your heart, you want to forget you ever saw Crest's death, but your memories are vital."

"My memories? I... I just don't know. Everything is so..."

Lin stopped sharply, pushing a hand to her head and gasping again.

"Argo's right, Lin," Monica said with certainty. "You memories are too important to lose. We need to try and awaken them, perhaps by visiting the lighthouse again."

"Monica," Max felt put off by his friend's rather cold attitude, but tried to avoid sounding too harsh and making things worse. "Lin's not in a fit state. She should stay here and rest. And besides, if she's made herself forget what happened for her own good, we shouldn't interfere with that."

"Don't be silly, Max. Lin's in pain; she can't spend the rest of her life without her memories. If we don't help her confront this it could damage her mind."

Max couldn't honestly say that he was following this, but Monica seemed to have a greater understanding of Lin's condition than he did.

"Besides, there's more to it than that. There's still a chance we can save Crest and the moon crystal."

Everyone in the room looked sharply at Monica. Several exclamations encouraged her to continue.

"In my time there's a device called a starglass. It can be used to move through time, but it can only move to a time that's very significant to the person using it."

"You're… from another time?" asked Lin.

"Yes, that's right Lin," Argo said. "I've seen them using a time rift to travel."

Lin looked back at Max and Monica with her mouth tilted open slightly, confusion in her eyes. Max considered trying to explain things in more detail, but Monica spoke again.

"You see, Lin? If we go to the lighthouse and you use a starglass, it will take us back to when the attack happened and we could help stop it. But it won't work if you don't remember the incident."

Lin still looked confused, and again put a hand to her head in pain. Max hadn't held out much hope that they could literally convince Lin to remember what happened, but he still felt disappointed that the revelation of the starglass hadn't helped her.

Lin looked over to the owl and said "W-what should I do, Argo?"

"I think you can trust these people, Lin. They've been trying to rebuild the town in the valley, and they've been fighting off the hostile creatures in the canyon all day. I think you should go with them and try to rescue master Crest."

Lin, clearly still having trouble taking it all in, said "Alright. I'll… get ready."

"Please," Argo spoke to the two adventurers as Lin moved through the small house, "look after Lin, and save Master Crest."

"Don't worry, Mr Owl. Count on us," Max replied confidently.

They left the cottage with Lin having donned a midnight blue cloak over her orange dress and carrying a leather satchel and a broomstick. Their first destination was not the canyon but the time gate.

"It shouldn't take too long to get a starglass, but I'm not sure…" Monica trailed off as she observed Lin, who was rubbing her head again.

Monica leaned closer to Max and whispered "I don't think Lin's in any state to cope with seeing the future. I think you should stay here with her and I'll bring back a starglass."

Max nodded in agreement; it seemed pretty sound advice. Monica then turned to Lin and said "Okay, I'm going to go get a starglass. You two wait here and I'll be back in a moment. Max," she turned to the boy next to her "activate the gate would you?"

Max carefully held out his red Atlamillia and placed it in the light of the time gate. The gate flared crimson, and Monica stepped calmly into it and vanished.

Lin was left staring dumbfounded at what she once believed to be merely a time rift.

"You really can use those things to travel through time! ?"

"Yeah, that's right," Max answered. "But to be honest there's not much to see since the town that used to be here is gone. We need to build more before it can be completely restored."

Lin looked at Max without a word. For the first time she seemed to take him in, eyeing him searchingly but not coming off as intrusive. Max felt a little embarrassed by the scrutiny but allowed Lin to get everything in order in her head. After a moment of this, Lin rather unexpectedly smiled.

"Rebuilding the town and trying to save the moon crystal. You two really are heroes, aren't you?"

Max considered the statement for a moment, then answered with a grin of his own.

"Yeah, I suppose we are,"

"This is amazing," laughed the young witch. "You're just like sages of legends."

"Sages?"

"Yes. Master Crest told me all about them. He said-"

All of a sudden Lin fell silent. Max looked at her in a moment of confusion, before realising what had been said that caused her to freeze.

"Lin, are you all right?"

The only reply he got was a haunted stare from the girl. She dropped her broomstick to the ground, and then fell into a crouch, hugging her knees to her face. Max took a step forward and raised his hands slightly, feeling the urge to act but unsure what to do.

"Lin?" he asked.

"I can't believe it," she hushed, voice nearly lost on the wind. "Master Crest can't be dead; not after all we've been through," the girl began tearing up and nearly bawled when she said "It just can't be!"

Max overcame his uncertainty by sheer force of will and approached her. He felt her body trembling as he wrapped an arm round her shoulders.

"It's alright. We going to save Crest and stop the people who… wanted to hurt him."

"If Master Crest really lost his life saving mine," Lin paused to wince and grip her head "how could I ever live with myself? He wanted to help everyone, not just me. I never wanted him to give up his own dreams just for my sake, and now-"

Lin stopped again, partly too choked to continue clearly and partly because of another migraine. Max struggled to think of some way to comfort her; tried to think of something- anything to say to take her mind off her pain. He came up blank.

After a moment Lin calmed down, but her face was gaunt. Max feared she gone into shock, but then she spoke.

"Master Crest always told me stories about the great sages. He said he met one when he was young. His village was attacked by bandits and then saved by a sorcerer who appeared from nowhere, but when he asked the stranger if he was a sage he said 'Of course not. A sage is someone who helps people just by being there'. That always makes him laugh."

Lin broke her monotone to laugh a little herself. Max made an effort to grin along with her but stayed focused on the witch's condition.

"Master Crest told me that that sorcerer was a sage to him, because he helped him just by being there. Master Crest has always dreamed of becoming a sage and helping people. And then ten years ago, when the world was destroyed and all the villages and towns were wiped out, he was there for me. I don't know how I survived but I was so lonely, and then he found me and took me in. He saved me just by being there, like my own personal sage."

The story ended there. Despite being worried about Lin, curiosity got the better of Max.

"Do you remember how the world was destroyed?"

Lin frowned at the question, then her gaze became distant as her mind turned to the past. Ten years she couldn't have been much older than five, but it seemed that her long term memory had not been affected by her amnesia.

"All I remember was… a dark cloud. Not lots of clouds but one huge cloud, full of evil, moving like it was bubbling. It swept over the land, and everything just ended. It was as though time was speeded up so that death and decay from the future happened immediately. People and buildings just wasted away in seconds. Some things like me just happened to survive by chance."

"Do you know of anyone else who survived?" Max asked uncertainly. "A woman called Elaine perhaps?"

Lin shook her head.

"It's always been me and Master Crest- no one else. If my Master is gone, then what am I supposed to do? Without him, my life is over- I don't have anything left. It'll be the end of me."

Lin face began to scrunch up into tearful despair until another headache distracted her. Max held her close, forgetting his previous inquisitiveness and feeling determined to do something to help.

"Don't talk like that, Lin- your life isn't over. We've got to stay strong if we're going to save Crest. You still have Argo, remember? And he's counting on you to save your master. What do you think he'd say if you gave up?"

Lin shook her head and murmured quietly.

"Master… Crest…"

"You said Crest wanted to help all people. Do you think he'd be happy if he thought he'd let you down because you couldn't carry on without him? There's still others who are there for you, like Argo who's been worrying about you all this time, and Doctor Dell who looked after you. And me and Monica- we could have gone on with rebuilding towns throughout the land, but we stayed to help you. Aren't they the sort of things Crest would have done- would have wanted you to do?"

This time Lin didn't say anything.

"We'll save Crest, and the moon crystal, and the whole of Balance Valley, but we can't do it unless we stick together. Me and Monica have been working to together for a while now and we've restored the town of Sindain and most of this town. Now we need you to work with us so we can finish the job. So what do you think- you want to help make things right in this town _and_ save Crest?"

Max waited for an answer, and Lin mulled over the words for a few moments.

"I… guess so," she said at length. "Master Crest wouldn't want me to just sit here and do nothing."

"Exactly! All we've got to do is try, and things will turn out all right- you'll see."

Lin couldn't stop herself chuckling at Max's baseless optimism.

"Maybe," Lin reached up to put her hand on the shoulder of the arm wrapped around her. She leaned her head against Max's arm in a tired fashion and said "Thanks for not giving up on me."

Max briefly thought of Monica and her initial reluctance to deviate from her mission, but he let it go. Even the best of people could make mistakes.

"No problem. We'll stick by each other right to the end. Count on it!"

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Despite how much it irked her, Monica finally had to admit that she'd been wrong. Helping Lin had turned out to be a huge benefit to her- no, _their_ mission. Now that the astronomy had been restored, it wasn't difficult for her to claim a starglass considering who she was. But without Lin's help, there'd be no way to restore Crest and the moon crystal.

Of course, there was still a lingering doubt. It was just by chance that helping Lin had helped them, and it could have turned out to be the distraction that she'd thought it would be from the start. But she wasn't going to let those doubts hold her back. It had still been the right thing to do, and Monica resolved to take more notice of Max's more kind-hearted if simplistic approach. She realised that her drive and ambition to succeed could actually be a flaw if it blinded her judgement, but in a way she found it comforting to know that Max was on hand to balance out her flaws, while she in turn could use her knowledge to present him to the wider world that he'd been denied all his life.

Monica had been alone for so long, and had seen so many awful things in such a short time. She'd put on a brave face and forced a smile, but already she felt tired of life and lacked the hope that she would succeed in stopping Griffin. Being with Max, and seeing all his nervous excitement and wonder as she showed him towns of the future and majestic forests and sights he'd never dreamed of- somehow it rekindled the softer side of her personality, reminding her of what it was like to see things in such an enthusiastic light.

They needed each other, and as long as they worked together the young warrior woman felt as though there was nothing they could not accomplish.

With all this in mind, Monica stepped towards the blue time gate determined to let Max know that things were going to change. He'd made such a difference in such a short space of time, and she owed that much to him. She had to let him know that she valued everything he'd done for her and that she already counted him as a dear friend whom she wasn't going to let down by losing her temper or making uncaring decisions.

Monica materialised in the past Balance Valley and looked around for said companion.

And froze.

There he was, squatting on the ground next to the young witch, Lin. One arm was latched round her shoulder, her head leaned into the embrace, smiles shared between the two.

Something in Monica twitched at the sight of the closely intimate gesture. An emotional impulse that she didn't recognise, niggling at her mind like an ant swarm clustering around a helpless prey. The feeling was unpleasant, souring her mood as she acknowledged her surprise at seeing her companion so close (apparently in more ways than just physical distance) to a girl who was practically a complete stranger to them.

"Hey, you're back," Max exclaimed, receiving Monica's arrival in with a casualness in surreal opposition to the noticeable affect it had had on her. "Did you get the starglass?"

Monica found herself looking at the boy in a different way. His differences to her jumped out with startling clarity, the girth of cultural upbringing and attitude and past experiences spanning a vast distance. They were worlds and times apart, and she knew nothing of him except what she'd seen in the past few days. He was as much a stranger to her as Lin.

Speaking of Lin, the girl had now moved to stand next to Max, looking slightly more confident as she waited for Monica's answer. They'd only just met her, but Max was getting along with her as though they'd known each other for years, while Monica had had no interaction with her whatsoever. Was it because those two came from similar origins that they had connected so well already? Were the differences the reason why the Atlamillia wielding pair had found themselves clashing today? Monica thought that Max had cured her of the intense loneliness she'd been feeling for such a long time before she'd travelled to the past on her mission, but now she realised that nothing had really changed. There was a barrier between her and the guy standing in front of her, and it took seeing Lin so close to Max to see that, because Lin was not obstructed by this barrier.

Darkness filled her heart.

"Of course I did, and we've wasted too much time. Are we going to the lighthouse or what?"

They were taken aback, and didn't answer straight away. Monica wasn't prepared to wait swept past them without another word, stalking towards the entrance of Starlight Canyon.


	17. The Sage who became a star pt 5

**Dark Chronicle**

**Chapter 3: The Sage who became a star**

**Part 5: Memory of Trees**

It couldn't be said that things were looking up. The Firbits had reached a dead end with the rebuilding of Balance Valley and had resorted to trying to keep busy by adding trees and fences to the landscape and painting the roofs of houses. Some of the people from Blackstone One had begun trying to excavate the cave network so that it could start being developed on, but clearly no one else was interested in living in Balance Valley than those who had already moved in.

Having returned to their trek through Starlight Canyon, it was clear to Max that Monica's attitude had dropped to an all-time low. She hacked monsters out of the way with mounting irritation and continued marching through the canyon without regard for her companions. Max struggled to work out what was wrong but couldn't see the problem, and when he'd tried to broach the subject with her she'd snapped sharply at him and began walking faster. Max was at a loss.

Lin wasn't faring any better under the circumstances. Sensing the ill feeling in the air, she'd retracted into herself, her Max-inspired optimism drying up quickly, and despite her magical powers was unable to bring herself to mount an effective defence against the monsters of the canyon, leaving Max to single handedly protect her while Monica always seemed to find an excuse not to be there to help, or if she couldn't then the only thing she would do was toss a fireball his way.

On top of that, Lin's memory showed no sign of coming back, and her headaches were getting worse and more frequent. A few times Max made her stopped and rest, trying to comfort her as the combined stress and pain nearly reduced her to tears.

And each time they stopped, Monica would watch from a distance, her face almost livid as she observed the two crouching together for minutes at a time.

Max just couldn't work out what was wrong with her.

Eventually something resembling good news finally turned up. As they walked along the bank of a small river that had punched out of the canyon wall some distance back, Lin suddenly said "Look at these."

After such long bouts of silence except for the occasional gasp of pain from a headache, her whispering voice caught even Monica's attention. Lin pointed out some straggly weed with diamond shaped leaves.

"Sea leaf," Lin said with a pleasant smile. "Grows with fresh river water and salty air. We're on the right track to the ocean."

"I do actually know which way you're going you know," Monica answered coldly. Max was tiring of the young woman's behaviour and nearly hissed a harsh rebuke.

"I know, but it reminds me," Lin explained solemnly. "Master Crest collects… _used_ to collect this plant. It makes a type of tea that he loved, but I always found it too bitter. I remember walking here days ago with Master Crest, helping him collect these on the way to the lighthouse."

"You remembered something!" Max said excitedly.

"Shame it isn't something useful," sniped Monica. The redhead then hopped over a cluster of boulders and out of sight down an incline before any retort could be made. A slightly crestfallen Lin abandoned the small plant and re-joined Max on the march.

"I'm really sorry about Monica," Max said sincerely, gritting his jaw as he found himself wanting to look away from Lin's wounded face. "I don't know what's gotten into her."

"I should be the one apologising," said Lin. "I didn't mean to cause."

"You didn't cause this, Lin."

"I have, by getting between you and Monica. You're both very fond of each other, aren't you?"

The annoyance flushed out of Max in an instant, and he was acutely aware that his cheeks had started tingling with rushing blood.

"W-we only just met each other two days ago."

"But already you're very close," Lin spoke as though finishing Max's sentence. She gave a small smile and said "You two seem to share something special with each other, but Monica feels I'm getting in the way of that, distancing you from each other. You having to hang around with me in case I faint or something can't be helping."

Max's mouth hung open in an unflattering 'O', looking between Lin and the direction where Monica had vanished.

"Monica wouldn't think like that," he frowned at Lin. "Would she?"

"Emotions are a strange thing. I know that better than anyone."

Max's eyes spoke a silent question at that, and Lin answered.

"For as long as I could remember, Master Crest has always been there for me. When he first took me in he was so young himself, but he raised and cared for me, and I thought of him as my dad for years. But then when I was older he'd teach me things and we'd work together to do chores and study. He started feeling more like a big brother than a dad. But now, in the last year or so, Master Crest has started to feel like… something else."

Lin gave a sort of embarrassed grin.

"It seems weird because I've known him for so long, but the thing is, Master Crest means the world to me. All my life my Master has been everything to me that a person could be. Just like a true sage- helping just by being there."

Lin looked directly at Max and said "Emotions like that can make people behave very strangely. I think it's those feelings that are causing Monica to act up."

Max found himself locked in place as he tried to mentally digest everything he'd heard. His face scrunched with effort as he mulled over Lin's reasoning, before he eventually shrugged and started to pick his way down the hill into the valley.

"I'm sure Monica's problem is nothing to do with you Lin," Max assured the girl firmly. "We were arguing this morning about how we should go about restoring Balance Valley. I thought we'd made up, but I guess she's still mad about it. That must be what it is."

With an ominous scrapping sound, Max lost his footing and slid halfway down the incline, yelping as his rear end bounced over the rocky surface. Lin watched him go, shaking her a little.

"Whatever she sees in you, it's not your powers of perception." she chuckled, before making her way down the slope.

The small area was hardly worth calling a valley; more like a reverse knoll that had sunk deep into the artery of the canyon. The river that had swept along the right hand side cascaded down in a shimmering waterfall, leaving a circular cavity where the water had been wearing away at the rock for countless generations. The shallow river flowed on under a natural bridge of earth and rock and disappeared into the stone on the other side of the valley. The walls of the depression in the mountain range was sandy, but the level ground in the middle was covered in grass and even a few trees, making the valley look like a park. With a light bird song flittering through the air and warm sunlight grazing on the small pasture, the idyllic scene was enough to melt a little of the icy atmosphere that had engulfed the trio of adventurers.

"Wow, what a place!" Max said. Monica couldn't help but nod in agreement as she looked around. The three walked at a relaxed pace, taking in the sight of the peace ridden field until-

"Look."

Lin's unexpectedly sharp tone had both Max and Monica turning to see the purple haired witch moving quickly up a small rise from where the branches of a particularly large tree could be seen waving in the breeze. Max went after Lin with a call for her to slow down. Monica followed slowly and silently.

Once over the small ridge, they could all see that the tree was more than just big; it was _enormous_! Its body was wide to the point of obesity, spanning many metres. The trunk towered so high that even at a stone's throw from the base, one had to crane their head all the way back to see the top. Healthy green branches flowed from the peak in a tidal wave of vitality. The organic structure was like a statement that said the small valley belonged to nature, and its very existence gave it an air of authority that no one would want to dispute.

"The great Yorda tree," Monica spoke reverently, crossing her heart with some complex hand sign. "It's a holy tree, thousands of years old."

The three gazed at the tree silently, trapped in its thrall. It was easy to see why people thought it holy; its aura was so pronounced and addictive that it wasn't difficult to believe that somehow the tree had been gifted with a power beyond the natural world.

"AHH!"

Max and Monica jumped away as Lin's shriek hit them. They turned on her, looking for and urgently asking what was wrong, but to no avail.

"Master! W-what… happened to you?" Lin fell to her knees, grasping her head in pain as thoughts and memories stampeded through her mind.

"What's happening?" Max stumbled as he tried to step forward and stay still at once, hands half raised in search of some practical action he could take as Lin clawed at her scalp with irrational agony.

"I think she's having some sort of flash back. Her memories are returning," Monica held her voice as rigid as possible, trying to cancel out the sound of fearful uncertainty in her tone.

Lin screamed again, louder this time, her voice bouncing back off the valley walls in distorted squawks. Panic began to mount as the stricken witch retched, before an inky black cloud of gas began pouring out of every orifice in her head; gushing out of her mouth, snorting down her nose, coming out of her ears- even her eyes.

"That's toxic mist!" Max darted back in a compulsive move of self-defence. Monica stood her ground and said "But what's it doing?"

The cloud finished leaving the head of the young girl (who promptly fell to the side) and began to coalesce in mid-air. The vapour was unaffected by what little wind there was as its particles came together her rather than dispersing. The black cloud formed a shape and started to change its substance, solidifying, gaining texture and new colour.

"Lin, get away from it!" Max yelled and rushed towards the trembling form. He ducked under the manifesting entity and tried to get Lin to move, but she was too traumatised to react.

Then Monica was there, pulling Lin to her feet and pushing her into Max's arms.

"Get her away from it Max. Carry her if you must; just get back!"

Max staggered back a few steps, but was too fixated on the thing as it finally completed its transformation and fell to the ground with a thump.

The whole was an obscene, bloated, greasy blob, layers of corpse coloured meat spewing up out of a bony white abdomen shell like a bursting pustule. Coming out of the bottom of the shell were a pair of flabby feet that were squashed formlessly into the ground under the thing's weight. Aside from the carapace of the lower body, the beast was devoid of any sharp angles or hard points that could indicate a bone structure, apparently entirely composed of slick blubber that ran in overlapping folds like melted candle wax. Two inadequately sized rubbery arms flopped uselessly at the side of the massive torso. The head was sagged and wrinkled, with thick green phlegm dribbling from a protruding tapir snout. The flaps of ears on top of the thing's head were the same shape as the small fangs that jutted up from the mouth like cysts. The eyes stared blindly with such lack of life that no one would had known the monster was alive if the glistening, fat body wasn't turning to face the three travellers.

Monica spat in disgust at the sight of the being.

"I should have known; the toxic mist is a Memo-Eater."

"What's a Memo-Eater?" a revolted Max tried to draw the Jurak pistol while keeping a tight hold of Lin.

"A digitally created demon- one of Griffin's secret weapons. It can consume memories and even people's minds. It must have been sent to destroy Lin's mind to make sure not even the memories of Crest would reach the future."

Monica pulled from her belt the small leather pouch that held the starglass and tossed it to Max.

"Take the bridge and get out of here. I'll hold this thing off."

"What! ? You can't fight it alone Mon-"

"You two are from this time. It wants your memories so that it can damage the future in ways that can't be fixed. It won't do any harm if it only gets me."

"Don't talk like that! I'm not leaving you here alone."

Monica looked away from the flabby horror and into Max's eyes, letting him see the passionate determination burning there.

"The Memo-Eater will do far worse to you than it will do to me. It'll sap at you until it's burnt out your conscious mind- your very soul even, till there's nothing left of you. If it gets me I'll only be killed, so just run and let me protect you as long as I can."

Monica looked back at the monster as it decided on a course of action and began to move at a ponderously slow rate towards them. Max could only stare at Monica, face contorted in horror, but his eyes glinting with admiration. Here she was, facing a creature far too big for her to defeat on her own, casually accepting that she would be gambling her life protecting her companions because the Memo-Eater would do worse to them if it caught them. A part of Max was in awe of his female friend's dedication to both her cause, and to protecting the people she was with. Only a minute ago she seemed furious with them. Now, she was prepared to give up everything to save them. Noble, but unacceptable- Max was _not_ going to leave her to face this thing alone.

At that moment, 'that thing' tensed up its body and leapt into the air like a flea, far beyond the limits that its bulk should have created. Both Max and Monica hurled themselves aside, Max dragging Lin with him as the heavy brute slammed into the ground where they'd all been standing a moment ago.

Spitting out a mouthful of grass and rich soil, Max turned his head to find the Memo-Eater looming over him. The boy threw out his left arm to shield Lin, while his right fumbled desperately for a weapon. The monster showed no concern for any injury it might take as it open a mouth filled with teeth sheathed in fuzzy green fur and brown spots. As the filthy maw opened wider a gunshot burst through the valley, but it hadn't come from Max.

Bell trigger in hand, Monica fired round after round into the creature's mouth as she flew at it and flipped up onto one of its broad shoulders. Unfazed by the lack of response after shooting into the massive gob, Monica swung her long sword up and round, slamming the blade into the beast's head. Instead of sinking wetly into layers of fat, the sword stuck fast in the Memo-Eater's head as though it were a stout oak, the skin barely even broken. Breathing hard through clenched teeth, Monica fought to pull the weapon free as she looked back over at Max.

"Get out of here! For Lin's sake!" the warrior woman paused as the grey skinned monster began struggling and thrashing around. "If we're to save Crest and the moon crystal, Lin needs to remember what happened to them! If you want to help, get her to safety!"

The sword came loose, and Monica was thrown from the thrashing beast, cartwheeling onto her feet as she hit the ground. The Memo-Eater went on the offensive, bouncing towards Max and his charge like a living space hopper. Deciding to heed his partner's words (to a point), Max dragged Lin to the shelter of the great Yorda tree, while Monica began flitting around the monster, stinging it repeatedly.

Once he'd found a relatively safe area round the back of the tree, Max said "Lin, I need to go back and help. Just stay here and you should be alright, okay?"

Lin didn't answer, still in a state of shock.

Max went to reassure her again, but was distracted by a heavy impact on the other side of the tree, followed by a short scream.

"Monica!"

All thought of staying to protect Lin flew out of his head. Max drew his weapons and dashed back to the fray.

Back in front of the tree, the monster backed off while Monica got her bearings after being slammed against the pillar of bark. The girl threw out her arm and lobbed a salvo of fireballs which splattered against the revolting creature, making patches of skin blister and pop. The thing grumbled and retaliated with a massive heave from its chest that had a green glob of scum bursting from its snout. The gooey ball of body fluid completely engulfed Monica's chest and head, effectively gluing her to the tree. Max took a half step towards her, afraid that she might drown in the slime, but was somewhat reassured as the swordswoman forced her head free of the mess in order to howl in utmost disgust.

The lumbering bulk of the Memo-Eater approached the trapped girl. Max raised his wildcat and fired at its chest, hoping to slow it down long enough for Monica to fight free. Bullets cut into the monster's flabby, pus ridden body, but it only seemed to irritate the thing, making it turn on Max.

Max backpedalled quickly, firing off rounds from the Jurak gun, but the laser seemed even less effective than the machine gun- the energy beams cut only the slightest of nicks and scalds in the digital demon's flesh, which in turn released a murky gas with a horrible smell that reminded Max of electrical ozone and metal.

"Toxic mist! Move, Max!"

Max understood Monica's warning just in time, and threw himself to the ground as the Memo-Eater huffed and blew the fetid vapour in the boy's direction. Max pressed his face into the earth as the cloud ruffled his loose hair, holding his breath despite the exertions of combat leaving him in need of oxygen.

Max felt the mist pass, but stayed put just in case until he heard Monica shouting again.

"Look out, Max!"

The young engineer looked up, only to face the eclipse of the Memo-Eater landing in front of him with an earth shuddering impact. Max was left disorientated by the tremor and the wave of mud that flowed over him, but could make out the doorway to inevitable death opening as the monster jaws stretched wide to reveal a dripping, muscular hole brimming with stained teeth and reeking of decay. Max scrambled to his feet, but by the time he'd made it to his knees the creature was dipping forward, the maw encroaching upon the boy, not roaring but simply inhaling fiercely. The spirit drained from Max as the air around him was sucked away, leaving nothing but a sudden terrifying certainty that he was about to die.

"Freeze ugly!" Monica exclaimed as she suddenly appeared alongside the fighting pair, her left arm pointing accusingly. As her righteous yell ended, a ball of blue energy exploded from her arm, phased through the air, and thudded against the side of the Memo-Eater's head. Instantly, the gunk on the monster's skin and the slime in its mouth crystallised and froze solid, trapping its head in position, the mouth locked open. The widened gash in the fiend's face dropped over Max like a shroud, but unable to shut, it quickly rose away again. The Memo-Eater backed up a step, groaning dismally as it flapped its arms pointlessly, its entire head layered with ice.

Max was shaken out of surprise by the nature of his rescue as Monica grabbed hold of his arm and pulled him up. He looked at the girl, then looked to her arm. In place of the coarse leather armlet he was used to, a gold emblem was clamped to Monica's upper arm by two bracelet bands. The centre of the emblem was stylised with a star shaped mosaic, while five baubles stretching out from the centre on small metallic arms. Monica caught his glance, and for the first time in an hour flashed Max a grin.

"Five-star armlet," she named the weapon. "Got it in the astronomy with the starglass, and ice isn't the only thing it can do."

To demonstrate the claim, Monica aimed her arm back at the Memo-Eater, and a crack of lightning whipped out of the girl's hand. The electricity shattered the glassy coating in an instant. The monster lowed in pain as its face was bleached red raw by the violent reaction. A small blackened hole in the monster's forehead indicated where the spike of lightning had stabbed into, but either the thing didn't have a brain or didn't need one to survive, because it once again turned its attention on its enemies and contracted its muscles as it prepared to jump.

Monica started from the lack of acceptable results from her attack, but returned once again to frantically ordering Max to get clear for his own sake while preparing to fight the thing alone. Max was inclined to agree, still shaken from having almost been swallowed by the foul creature, but knowing that Monica would be left to face that sort fate alone stopped him. He couldn't just leave her to it.

"I said run, Max!" barked Monica as another blast of ice from her armlet stunted the demon's leap into a slight hop.

"I told you, I'm not leaving you here alone!"

"Max, you… oh hell!"

The Memo-Eater stomped up to the pair. Monica forced Max to stay behind her as she took aim with her magical trinket. The monster came close, raising its arms and sucking in a titanic breath-

-and then the monster froze and began to inflate like a balloon.

A "What?" and a "Huh?" blurted from Max and Monica respectively. They backed away slightly and remained ready for an attack, but the Memo-Eater continued swelling up as the loose wrinkles stretched like skin pulled over a drum.

"Memo-Eater's aren't supposed to do this, right?" asked Max.

"I don't think so," Monica answered uncertainly "but I don't really know that much about them."

The creature went on expanding to painful proportions, its arms drowning in the rest of the body, the snout bubbling as it reached forward with internal pressure, eye sockets peeling painfully away from the soft, lifeless orbs. When the Memo-Eater had become the same size as the great Yorda tree it stopped growing for a moment. Something akin to a rather pitiful whine escaped from the creature's bulging lips.

Then the Memo-Eater began to rumble.

"What's it doing?" Max took one step towards the monster. A second later, he was thrown back by Monica, who then based herself firmly in front of her companion.

"Stay back!" she demanded. "I think it's about to-"

Then the beast exploded.


	18. The Sage who became a star pt 6

_**I owe you all a massive apology for this chapter. I know I promised several of you that this was to be 'THE' moment you've all been waiting for (you know what I'm talking about) and it was meant to be ready for you in time for Christmas, but while near the start of this chapter I was struck by the most massive bout of writers block I've ever had. I don't know how, but this minor scene just grew so disproportionately large as I tried to go round the block, that in the end I had to post this as my next chapter. Sorry if it comes as an anti-climax to what you were expecting. If you do find it vaguely good to read for now, then I'll be pleased. If not, feel free to flame me for this utter cowpat of an update, but rest assured I'll be starting on something better soon.**_

**Dark Chronicle**

**Chapter 3: The Sage who became a star**

**Part 6: The Final Stretch**

Exploded wasn't really the right word to describe it.

The Memo-Eater popped, the echo of the noise putting nearby birds to flight. Its putrid flesh vanished into a wall of liquefied entrails that flew in all directions. Max turned his head from the disgusting spectacle, only to feel a giant drop of gunge splat against the side of his head.

Max paused for a second, coming to terms with the shock of what had just happened as a sickly smelling fluid crept down his cheek. The valley as a whole fell quite, holding its breath in the aftermath of the unexpected occurrence. Max remained stock still as he waited, and after a moment of absolutely nothing happening he was confident that somehow or other he was no longer under threat.

"Man," he said, climbing to his feet and wiping his hair, wishing he hadn't lost his cap in the condor valley. "What was that all about? Was that some sort of Memo-Eater attack or was he just trying to cover me in filth?"

Monica pivoted around to face him. Max felt his brain jam as he took in the sight of her.

In her effort to defend the Palm-Brinkian, Monica had unwittingly acted as a human shield against the tidal wave of slime, and was now covered head to foot in lumpy, milky gloop. The shape of her body had vanished completed under the sloping drift of scum, and not even the heavy smell of the foul substance was enough to knock Max out of his daze as Monica raised a hand and ran it across her face with deliberate slowness to uncover her eyes.

"Covered _you_ in filth?" the amazon bubbled through half glued lips.

There was nothing at all funny about the situation. If anything it was peak of uncomfortable embarrassment, seeing his friend so inescapably drenched in the foul substance when he knew how much she detested slimy things, while he escaped unscathed. Nevertheless, as he found himself caught between a proverbial rock and a hard place, unable to escape a situation where he had no idea how to react, Max just couldn't help himself. A single nervous laugh pressed its way out of him.

Monica's new armlet flashed with shades of sky and sea. The slimy mound only had a second to become accustomed to its frozen state before Monica shattered through, eyes and jaw set hard as stone.

"Something funny! ?"

Monica closed on Max so they were almost flat up against each other. A combination of embarrassment and fear as he felt the furious girl's body press aggressive into him made Max go weak at the knees, but he dared not move and risk provoking Monica further, instead straining to hear her over the sound of his own heartbeat hammering in his ears, and trying to ignore the impulse to point out that the slime still tangled in her hair was seeping down her shoulders.

"I asked you a question Max! Are you getting something out of seeing me like this! ?"

"Uh…"

"Don't blame him; it's my fault."

Max and Monica turned their head's simultaneously. Lin was standing with one leg braced back against one of the roots of the great Yorda tree, aiming the smoking business end of her broomstick at the place where the Memo-Eater had detonated.

"You blew that thing up?" Max asked. Lin nodded tiredly.

"On me?" Monica's eyes narrowed.

"I can only do so much with my magic," she murmured as she rubbed her eyes. "I thought the most important thing was to kill that monster."

"Are you okay Lin?" Max went over to Lin, glad of an excuse to put some much needed distance between him and Monica. With his back to Monica, he was unable to see just what she thought of his apparent concern for Lin's wellbeing after he'd just laughed in her face over the slime business.

"I remember everything now," the witch's husky voice had taken on a sudden intensity. "The lighthouse, the battleship, and…" then the girl's large eyes dimmed and became empty.

"Oh Master Crest."

Lin's place one hand over her face and began to cry.

Max was immediately at her side, laying his hands on her shoulders in a tentative half hug. Monica stayed quiet, watching Max embracing her with a face that looked like she was trying to swallow something very bitter with sharp angles.

Lin's weeping only went on for a few seconds. She stopped abruptly and looked at Max and Monica.

"I remember everything. That means we can use the starglass now, doesn't it?"

The question was directed at Monica. On the face of it she didn't seem at all affected by the strength of the emotion flowing out of Lin, nor by her tearstained face, but the warrior woman paused before she answered the desperate young witch in a steady voice.

"Yes, we can. But we still have to get to the lighthouse before it will do us any good."

Lin didn't react for a moment, clearly still in some state of shock. Max reached out again and took hold of Lin's hand. Monica's eyes were drawn to the clasped hands, but she kept her face neutral.

"Don't worry, Lin. We can pull this off; I just know it."

Lin regarded the hand around hers. Then, after taking a deep, shuddering breath, she looked up and smiled at Max.

"You're right. This is no time to give up. We should get going right away."

"Yeah, that's the spirit," Max gave Lin's hand one final squeeze before he let go and turned to look at Monica.

"Well, there's no time to- oh," he took in the warrior woman's appearance, her hair, arms and boots still coated in gunk.

"Er… are you all right as well?"

Monica's cold glare was the only answer he received. The girl spun on her heel, snapping several large blobs from her ponytail as it swung with her, and stormed off in the direction of the valley exit.

Max watched her go with a sinking feeling in his stomach. As he did, one thought went through his mind.

'_I messed up there, didn't I?'_

X-X X-X X-X X-X X-X X-X X-X X-X X-X X-X X-X X-X X-X X-X X-X X-X X-X X-X X-X X-X X-X

Monica was so furious; angrier than she'd ever been in her life, and the person she was the angriest with, was herself.

She stamped on the head of a screaming gammon lizard in another futile attempt to vent her rage. She didn't want to think about things because she knew she simply had no reason to feel so angry. So what if Max and Lin were getting on so well? So what if Max seemed to think little of her? Why should that bother her?

Monica looked back at the pair who she felt such unjustified anger for. With her resolve rekindled, Lin had become quite a powerful fighter in her own right, sending the monsters of Starlight Canyon running with magical wounds peppering their hides. Since Monica had once again taken the lead on her own, Max and Lin had teamed up to fight their adversaries together, much in the same way that the two Atlamillia holders had done so only recently.

Monica was determined not to be childish about it, and as she saw them working in tandem with her left out, she had to acknowledge that she was in fact jealous.

Again, the question 'WHY?' screamed at her, and with no more monsters to distract herself with the girl made some attempt to explain her behaviour.

There was nothing to be jealous of. As she kept telling herself, she'd only known Max for just over a day. Circumstances had pushed them together, yes, but the fact remained that they'd had a laughably small amount of time to get to know each other, and Monica certainly didn't believe there was such a thing as 'love at first sight' (not that things were as serious as that of course). Therefore, the only possible reason for her being mad would be due to her developing some shallow possessive feelings for Max just because they survived a few near death experiences together and saved each other's life once or twice.

Just as she thought, Monica was being completely unfair to both Max and Lin as she had no valid reason to care about how they felt for each other. If they'd started having feelings from each other from the moment they'd met, who was she to stand in the way of that; in a way it was kind of cute! Of course, that was a massive contradiction in that Monica had just confirmed she didn't believe in such things as love at first sight, but somehow it felt easier to just say that she was in the wrong and that she should just cheer up, rather than wonder if there was another reason she felt so jealous of the apparently blossoming relationship between the engineer and the witch.

"Hey Monica," Max called tiredly, jogging up before the amazon could stride on ahead without waiting for them again. Despite how much she wanted to ignore him, Monica's own reasoning for not being allowed to be angry with the boy meant she couldn't just blow him off.

When she turned to look at him, she noticed that the expression on his face was one of tentative friendliness, not the one of resentful disappointment and hurt he'd been giving her whist she been putting Lin down on their way to the Great Yorda tree's valley. Now she thought about it, he'd been doing his best to engage her in polite conversation and smile at her ever since the fiasco with the Memo Eater. Apparently he felt bad about the way he'd behaved after she'd ended up getting drenched in filth to protect him. She supposed she ought to feel grateful for his efforts, but all she could feel was further resentment towards him, much to her own irritation. Why couldn't she just get over herself and stop being so stupid about this! ?

"What?" the blunt reply left her lips before she'd even planned a response. She mentally kicked herself for still not letting up on Max, but made no attempt to correct the mistake.

"Listen, we've been thinking," the boy heaved though great gulps of air, gesturing to an equally breathless Lin. "We've been running into a lot of ambushes since we came to this part of the canyon. That last fight was a close call; closest one so far."

Monica noticed that Lin had taken a harsh blow to the head, one of her hair bunches a broken, bent-double limb, matted with blood. The angry part of the red-head argued that, as she'd been saying since they first set eyes on Lin, wasting time looking for condors and windflowers had given the enemy time to organise themselves and prepare these ambushes.

"Well, what do you want me to do about it? We're close to the lighthouse now; we just have to keep pressing on."

"Actually there is something you could do," Lin offered carefully.

Reaching into her satchel, the witch produced a disc of grey plastic. Monica had quickly learned that plastic was a pretty rare substance in this day and age, so she knew immediately what it must be.

"This monster change badge allows you to transform into a type of beast monster. In this case, it's been upgraded to the savage ram level," she handed the badge to Monica. "But the thing is, this belonged to Master Crest- I can't actually use these badges. They're a pretty advanced form of magic, but Max says you're able to use them," Lin gave a smile and a slight tilt of her head as a sign of respect for the other girl's magical ability. The attempt to be friendly was lost on Monica, and Lin's smile fell.

"Well, I mean," Lin stumbled over the words. "Apparently the savage rams have very strong senses, so I was thinking maybe you could, y'know, monster change and go ahead to sniff out any other ambushes, then try to convince the monsters to leave or at least show themselves."

Monica looked grimly at Lin. The fact that this girl wanted Monica to present herself as a beast was a demeaning feeling, but she forced herself to look at the idea from a tactical point of view.

"Guess it could work, but if I meet any monsters that aren't beasts I probably won't be able to get them to cooperate. And besides, what if you two were ambushed again while I was away?"

Monica half expected there to be some cold remark about how they been managing fine on their own while she'd wandered ahead without them. Of course she didn't need to worry, as Max's answer was "We'd be okay. You're the one who'll be in danger, being right among the monsters. We were just asking if you think it's safe enough to try."

'_Should have known better than to think he'd say anything like that,'_ Monica scolded herself again. This was a prime example of how she had to put her own feelings aside and think about her mission, by making sure the three of them got to the lighthouse intact.

"Besides, me and Lin are making a pretty good team. We should be able to handle anything that comes at us until you come back."

Lin smiled and nodded, the movement catching Max's eye who turned and returned her smile. Monica took a second to absorb the sight of them smiling at each other.

In the next moment, her blood turned to lava.

The very thought of going off and leaving them two alone, together- it took all of Monica's effort not to scream the canyon walls down, or to ignite her flame armlet out of reflex.

'_Damn reason and damn tactics! I'm not turning myself into an animal and risking my life just so they can have some private time!'_

Everything the girl from the future had decided about having no reason to be angry was out the window, but she retained enough sense not to give voice to her opinions. Out loud she said "Well, 'pretty good team' is all well and good for _you_, but it's not exactly filling me with confidence."

Both faces in front of her fell, but Monica blundered on.

"I've seen professional, disciplined squads of soldiers, and this group is a long way off from that. Splitting up is probably the worst thing idea of how to cope with the monsters. And if you can't handle them then maybe you should just stand back, and _I'll_ deal with them for you."

Without waiting for a reply, Monica turned on her heel and continued walking through Starlight Canyon. No reply came, except for the eventual noise of subdued footsteps following her.

The following silence was not exactly uncomfortable, in the sense that no one felt like saying anything to fill the verbal void, but it was far from pleasant. Monica protected herself from the dark atmosphere that had veiled the trio by continuing to stay as far ahead of her companions without going far enough to give Lin's scouting idea any credit.

'_So that's all I am to you, huh? A sniffer dog, to be sent running off on a wild goose chase so that you two can be alone together? To hell with that!'_

The female knight rounded a jutting chin of rock, a ledge laden with multiple boulders, and looked down the path ahead. The canyon ahead stretched beyond at the length of the Blackstone One, before the walls began to peel open and sink into the ground- the end of the canyon was in sight.

"Huh, no need for scouting anyway," the girl muttered smugly to herself. She intended to say it again, loud enough for Max and Lin to hear, but several sharp snapping sounds threw her off. She turned and gave an embarrassing yelp as the three ledge mounted boulders she'd passed rolled of their own accord, crushing stones with a sharp _'snap' 'snap'_ as they moved, and thudded onto the path one by one, cutting her off from her fellow adventurers. As they came to a halt, each rock split across the middle, as though slashed by an invisible knife. Three lipless mouths pulled open, and what were undeniably eyes flipped up on each sphere. Monica recognised them as ivanoff's, runtish throwbacks of the mimic race. Behind them a quartet of knife wielding smiling fairies bounded from where they'd hidden behind the living stone's, chittering like insects and greedy for blood. Behind Max and Lin, who'd just raised their weapons to meet the threat, the cliff face burst from within as two living statues hacked their way through with their massive chisel-headed lances.

As the enemy fell into ranks and levelled their weapons, a shimmering heat haze distorted the air on the ledge from which the monster's and their weekdayz allies had sprang the ambush. From this discrepancy, a stunted figure faded into view. Garbed in royal blue vestments and a violet sash covered in runes, the being was easily identifiable as a priest of Rama, the unholy eastern deity of starvation and deprivation. Whatever creature the priest had once been was lost forever; the blessing of the dark god had mutated his flesh until he resembled Rama's own physical appearance. The purple striped mitre on the cleric's head was not enough to hide the face of a sandy orange carrion bird with an aquatically coloured hooked beak, perfectly shaped for striping meat from a fresh carcass. The clawed feet were shrunken since the fiend's power of flight made them unnecessary. There were no arms attached to the body, but two vast gloves, each one bigger than the priest's torso, levitated at his flanks.

"What the hell is it?" Max gawped at the spectre.

"Don't try and fight it. He's too dangerous," Monica warned him in reply. She knew enough about the wicked disciples of Rama from her studies to know that, given half the chance, this dark apostle would kidnap and fly all three of them to be sacrificed via starvation on one of his desert alters. Decay and destruction was the method of worship for the evil Rama cult, making the magic endowed priests the perfect officers for Emperor Griffin's monster army in his mission to destroy the entire living world.

The priest of Rama's disembodied hands moved behind his back to perform the ritualistic invocation of his magical powers, outsized fingers drawing forbidden patterns in the air.

"The priest is controlling the monsters and weekdayz," Monica explained calmly and firmly. "Just hold off the ones attacking you- I'll deal with him."

Gone now was the angry and jealous Monica. With the arrival of the attack force, her honed warrioress persona took over. Emotions and memories and idle thought vanished, and only purpose remained, the purpose for which she had travelled back in time for, for which she fought alongside Max and Lin for- to preserve the past and guarantee the future. Surging forward to confront the enemy, the girl's only thoughts for her companions now were to keep them safe, at any cost. She thought nothing of the danger to herself as a result of such behaviour, except to embrace it, to draw the ambush towards herself in order to protect her two allies. She grinned as the adrenaline chased the blood through her veins and raised her sword triumphantly.

The priest of Rama let out a bloodthirsty screech as a blue magic tinge evaporated from his reappearing hands. The effect of the spell was immediate.

The monster horde moved in for the attack.

Monica's blade hacked down onto the ivanoff in the middle of the three coming at her. A massive 'CLANG' sent a wedge of stone ricocheting away from the magical creature's head, but left both of her hands glued to the sword handle with the shock of impact.

Monica backed away from the monster, struggling to coax her limbs back to life, when the priest of Rama decided to act and fired a circle of pinkish light at her. The numbness in the girl's hands seemed as if to spread to the rest of her body when the light hit. Her whole body froze in place. The Assassin's Touch was a short-lived spell, but lasted long enough for the wounded ivanoff to bounce forward and bite down on Monica's arms, sword and all. By the time feeling returned to her body, Monica had been swallowed up to the elbows.

"Let go, damn it!" she shouted as she braced a foot against the ivanoff's hull-like body. Unsurprisingly, neither shouting nor struggling did any good. Luckily the stone didn't have any teeth, but any longer in its grasp and it would just tear Monica's arms out at the sockets. Monica wasn't unduly concerned; her fencing master had taught her a trick just right for this situation.

"You hungry, ugly? Well eat this!"

Monica forced magical fire from her flame armlet as fast and as hard as possible. Orange tongues bubbled and drooled from the monster's maw, and while it felt no more pain than it had when a chunk had been cleaved from its skull, the pressure forced its mouth up and open. Monica escaped the creature's rocky embrace, but she held position, hoping to generate enough power to rip the top half from the bottom. The chance didn't come as the priest of Rama noticed the strategy and directed the boulders accordingly. The one Monica was attacking shrugged away, while the others rolled forward to assist. Monica avoided one but was struck by the other and was bowled over. The ivanoffs lined up like a centurion defensive formation. Monica flipped back onto her feet and threw herself at the wall of monsters.

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Max dragged air into his lungs as his wrench became many, pummelling the statue indiscriminately as he searched rapidly for some weak point. He found none, and the tower of a warrior punched him back, the pointed knuckle almost puncturing his flesh. The mechanic stumbled as he tried to keep his footing.

"Are you alright?" Lin called over the shrieking of weekdayz.

"I'm fine. Just try and get some sort of magic you can use on this thing."

Lin had hit the second statue with a spell that left it dripping with goo and moving at snail's pace, but the sweep of its huge weapon was still enough to keep the pair of them from getting behind it rather than remain surrounded. The second statue had attacked and severely wounded Lin before she could use a spell on it. If it hadn't had been for the very quick and skilful use of her healing magic, she'd be dead. For the moment her powers were exhausted, so Max had switched places so that she could fight the smiling fairies while she recovered her supernatural abilities, leaving him to confront the stone soldiers.

By now there were three weekdayz remaining, one having been gunned down by a well-placed salvo from Max's classic gun. Another had a busted jaw and a third sported an acid burnt complexion, courtesy of a vial from Lin's satchel. Though the witch's strengths lay in her knowledge of magic, she was proving herself to be a surprisingly adept fighter, twirling her broomstick like a quarterstaff to knock down and brain the vicious little imps. In retaliation for the stiff resistance they were throwing up, the priest of Rama's hands once again found their way to the bird fiend's back, signing another silent incantation.

"Watch out Max!"

"Watch out Lin!"

Both cries occurred simultaneously. On the other side of the battlefield, Monica seethed and intensified her attack.

The spell conjured by the priest was not any form of attack, but a dark influence that engulfed the weekdayz. Streaks of blue sparks trailed upwards from their bodies, and as the last of them peeled away the three warriors were left changed. The wounds previously inflicted had healed, and the skin of the pintsized killers had been burnt red, their clothes bleached white. Foaming at the mouth they charged forward, knives and teeth flashing in anticipation. Lin thrust her broomstick like a spear, hitting the nearest midget with a powerful blow. The force of the attack flattened its petite nose into its head and knocked out its two front teeth, but the midget fought on, nasal growls and spittle flying from its face.

"They're too tough! I can't beat them!" Lin fretted as she trapped a weekdayz's leg with the broom handle and stamped on its ankle, again causing horrible injury that didn't faze it in the slightest.

Max didn't reply in words, but quickly unslung his wildcat and triggered a burst of automatic fire into the smiling fairy storming at Lin's flank. The bullets bit deep but didn't kill, and Max was forced to turn his attention back to the living statue he was fighting, hosing it ineffectively with bullets. As Lin used the distraction of the gunfire to move back and recover her senses, the priest of Rama cast yet another spell and healed the injuries of the weekdayz.

"This is impossible!" Lin shouted in outrage. "We have to stop that priest or we're dead!"

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Despite her negative response to Lin's opinions, Monica had to agree with her on that. The priest was an effective commander, and it had taken all of Monica's skill and effort just to defeat one ivanoff, goading it into rolling over the cliff edge and into the distant river while the bird creature was busy casting healing spells rather than directing the living stones. She silently agreed that the cultist had to go, but she needed to make some room first.

With an overhand throw, Monica hurled her sword into the ground as the second ivanoff tried to roll into her. The monster's mouth got caught on the weapon and for a moment it appeared jammed in place. Monica quickly dashed to confront the third living boulder while the unholy chaplain channelled it's intelligence to the trapped magical being, allowing the simple stone mind to figure out how to free itself. Not wanting to draw the leader's attention to her, Monica did no more than engulf her adversary in a storm of icy wind and water, slowing but doing no harm to it.

"Come on, what you waiting for?" Monica laughed madly as the stone creature shrugged forward, its joints already frozen enough that it couldn't roll or open its mouth fully. "You want a fight? Well here it is!"

Monica couldn't tell if her hysterical act had anyone fooled, but the priest of Rama allowed her to freeze the third ivanoff, not considering a futile attack apparently fuelled by panic to be of any concern while the second ivanoff was still wedged in place. The priest continued to cast his dark influence upon the trapped monster until it finally freed itself and began advancing on the now unarmed girl. Monica sensed it approaching and waited for the last moment before darting aside and raising her right arm instead of her left. Her flame armlet belched out a boiling crimson river that washed over her stone antagonists. The until recently trapped one was unaffected, but the half frozen rock reacted badly with the flames, it's iced face shattering like glass, turning the sphere into a dome that thumped lifelessly to the ground.

"Two down," Monica gloated as she snatched up her blade "and you're next," she pointed at the priest of Rama with her long sword, before breaking into a run, right past the final ivanoff and towards the monster master.

The avian horror shrieked in outrage as Monica came at him, the final ivanoff turning in pursuit at a painfully slow rate. In response to the call, one of the weekdayz left the battle with Lin and dived into the swordswoman's path.

With a fierce cry of "Hyah!" Monica slapped the berserker's blade aside and cut him down in a single movement, but as she did the priest of Rama fired a blast of fell power from its colossal fist.

Monica rolled away as an incandescent blast left a crater where she had been standing. She came to her feet and replied with a lash of electricity from her five-star armlet that punched a smouldering hole in the false prophet's robes. The priest of Rama crowed and fell out of the air.

"You think that's bad?" Monica began to sneer at the enemy captain. "Just you-" but the next word turned into a protracted scream as the weekdayz she thought she'd killed dived at her and sunk its dagger into the female knight's foot.

Monica limped away as the blade slipped free, ruby droplets falling from the downturned point. The smiling fairy laughed and jabbered over the accomplishment.

"Blood! Blood for Griffin! Blood for the Emperor!"

In a spurt of indignant outrage, Monica sprang forward, knocked the deadly knife out the way and lifted the weekdayz off the ground.

"Well he isn't having mine!" she spat in the creature's face, before rolling onto her back and flipping the crazed pixie over the cliff edge. By the time it hit the water it was too far away for the splash to be heard.

The girl reached down to grasp at her foot, squeezing the flesh near the wound desperately. The moment she did she realised the fatal mistake; she was a sitting target, but it was too late to move now. A familiar pinkish hue soaked into her skin, and an impulsive cry died in her throat as the Assassin's Touch froze her to the spot.

"Monica, what's wrong?"

Monica strove to answer Max, but sculpted into place by the spell, she couldn't even control her breathing, much less her tongue. As she remained trapped in a crouch, she saw the injured yet still alive priest of Rama moving his hands behind its back to perform more witchcraft now that his prey was trapped. The undeniable glow of fell blasting coalescing at his fingertips spelled doom for Monica. Feeling was coming back to her, but far too slowly. The destruction magic would pulp her so utterly that not even a necromancer would be able to derive any semblance of life from her corpse.

Monica's heart clenched at the sight of her own death. She was not so much worried for her own fate- she'd been prepared for this ever since she'd become the holder of the blue Atlamillia. The only thing on her mind at that moment was the failure her death would represent- to die without her mission complete, and to leave her friends at the mercy of Griffin's warriors…

Monica nearly laughed at the thought, except that her mouth was still locked in place. Barely a moment ago she couldn't stand the sight of Max and Lin, getting on so well together without her, sticking with them just so she could make sure they kept their minds focussed on their objective, even when all she wanted to do was leave them to it and not have to suffer their presence. Now, she openly thought of them as friends, and the thought of losing them in this way filled her with despair. No chance to do anything about it though. Instead she watched as the priest of Rama began to move his hands in the final hidden ritual movements, giant hands moving up and down his back as though massaging himself as the fell magic reached its apex.

'_This is it,'_ thought Monica.

A brilliant white flash engulfed the twisted bird creature, unexpectedly coming at it from the flank. The fiend stumbled unprepared out of the air again, its magic spell dissipating into streaks of blue light.

Feeling finally returned to Monica's body. She bleared through retina burn blotches towards the source of the distraction that'd saved her life. In front of two staggering, eye-rubbing weekdayz, Max stood triumphantly, dropping the overloaded flash bulb from his camera.

"How's that for a scoop?" he chortled.

The priest of Rama let out another furious shriek and gestured with a clawed foot. Max immediately went on the defensive against whatever attack might come from the evil preacher, but behind him the statue fighting Lin forced its way past the young witch and came at the boy.

"MAX!" both girls screamed simultaneously, but by the time Max had began to turn the statue's poleaxe was swinging.

The massive spiked head of the weapon bit deep into Max's chest, imbedding itself in place, jamming between his ribs. The boy gave a strangled, startled yell as the blow swept him off his feet, allowing his body weight to pull at where the lance was stuck fast. With a growl like gravel underfoot, the statue hoisted Max into the air on the end of its lance, and hammered him savagely into the canyon wall. Bones snapped with the resilience and sound effect of fresh kindling on a fire. Spurting blood painted an obscene image over the sandstone canvas, and as the lance pulled free Max peeled away from the surface and fell to the ground, a sack full of clattering bones and pulped organs.

A shrill scream flowed from Lin's mouth before she clapped her hands to her face, eyes bulging frog-like, her broomstick and the enemies around her forgotten as she gazed at the broken, bloody figure of her recently made friend.

Monica's reaction was not as passive.

With an outraged battle cry on her lips, Monica leapt to her feet, flying towards the knot of warriors milling around her fallen companion.

Everything became strangely blurred to Monica. Her ears were pounding, and the wounds in her body were no longer hurting. In her mind, all she could think about was Max.

'_Please not Max. Not like this,'_ she thought. _'I don't care what he thinks of me or Lin; I don't want to see him die.'_

The girl's blade seemed to move of its own accord, cutting the final two smiling fairies to ribbons without effort. Through her still blurring vision she could make about the form of the statue looming over Max, who appeared to be still breathing for the moment, hefting the lance for another strike.

'_I promised I wouldn't survive while those I cared about died.'_

Monica raised her sword above her head.

"I keep my promises!" she growled, before leaping forward to catch the magical creature's next blow. Monica swung her long sword with all her might against the force of the falling axe, and managed to severe the head. Unperturbed, the statue took a single step forward and stamped on Monica's injured foot.

The young woman yelled and tried to pull her trapped foot free, but only succeeded in falling over. As she hit the ground, the statue balled its fist and drew back its arm, but before it could attack Lin's broom was swung round in a wide arc and caught the stone warrior on its side. The automation fell apart under the blow. Monica caught the sight of a stonebreaker attribute charm attached to the neck of the broom, giving the weapon its destructive power as Lin made it work overtime in search of retribution for Max.

Monica spotted a second blocky figure coming at Lin from behind. Her exclamation of "Look out!" came instinctively. The gooified statue fought the restrictive stickiness and delivered a devastating jab with its lance into the base of Lin's spine before she could move. The girl crumpled to the ground, her mouth agape.

Monica's stomach lurched with a poignant jolt, despite her misgivings about Lin, as she realised the young witch might be dead. She forced the feeling aside and attacked. A burst of magic from star armlet froze the slime on the living construct and trapped it. Monica resisted the urge to try and help her stricken companions, instead turning to face the remaining threat of the final ivanoff and the priest of Rama. As she did, she spotted the priest casting another spell and brought up her sword just in time.

A long line of power connected between Monica and the bird-like abomination. The energy pulsed and crackled and tried to force its way past the long sword, but Monica held it in place, forcing it to absorb and hold the energy. Her defence was strong, but she was unfamiliar with this use of her weapon, and if she didn't offload the power soon her blade would shatter.

'_If I don't find some way to distract him, we're all dead,' _she thought as she noticed that the priest was keeping her pinned while the ivanoff advanced upon her. _'But how am I going to do this on my own?'_

But in this case Monica was not alone, and a large brush cut into the bond of fell magic between the priest and the warrior just as her sword reached breaking point. Lin, stunned and crippled but alive, had dragged herself over and was using her broomstick to soak up the power herself.

With one hand holding the broom and the other keeping her body off the ground, Lin turned to the now uncontested Monica and breathed "I'll hold him. Get the ivanoff."

Monica grinned in appreciation.

"Glad to have you here."

She meant it. In that moment, she wondered why she'd ever wished they'd never helped Lin.

With a single sweep of her sword, Monica lobbed the unholy magic she'd absorbed into her weapon at the ivanoff, smashing it to pieces without any trouble. In the moment it took to do this, Lin was beginning to wilt under the force of the attack. Now free to think and act, Monica quickly decided how to defeat the final enemy. In a single swift movement she plucked the stonebreaker charm from Lin's broom and, swinging her blade like a spheda club, flicked the amulet high in the air towards the cliff face. As it struck, the charm vanished in a flash of light and the vertical surface of rock exploded outwards. Huge chunks of rock detached from the impact point and began to plummet. The priest of Rama stopped his attack and looked up, crying out in horror as his huge hands hovered protectively over his body. The falling rocks butted the palms aside with ease and struck the priest in rapid succession. In a matter of seconds he was battered to death.

No form of victory cry or smiles of relief were offered in acknowledgement of the triumph. Both of the girls were at Max's side before the priest stopped twitching.

It was a horrific sight.

With his ribs gone, the mechanic's body had deflated. Blood was leaking freely from his mouth and multiple wounds of varying degrees of severity. Every inch of the young man's form was coated crimson; it was a miracle he was still alive as it was.

Max didn't acknowledge either of the two girls, his mind clearly slipping to a place where the living didn't belong. Lin was kneeling next to him, examining injuries with shaky hands. Monica stood and watched helplessly. Healing magic did next to nothing for mortal wounds. Rendered so powerless, so impotent, she couldn't bring herself to pretend that there was something she could do. Her vision was still blurred, and she reached up half-heartedly to check her eyes.

They were full of tears.

'_Again,'_ Monica thought, joining Lin of her knees across from their hopeless patient. _'How can I go through this again? I've failed someone else. What am I going to say to his dad?'_

The grief was close to overwhelming her. What could she possibly do that would possibly make up for this? She seen Max's home, the servants along with the Adel the maid thought highly of Max, and Gerald Zelmite, Max's father. Monica felt herself growing weak at the thought of going to them, explaining what had happened. The pain it would cause didn't bare thinking about, yet Monica knew that nothing that could overrule this fate for Max.

Lin looked up and said through trembling lips "D-do you kn-know anything that could help?"

Monica shook her head.

"There's no magic that can help. If we move him, he'll most certainly-" Monica found herself unable to finish. She reached out and gently stroked Max's blood slicked hair, trying to offer some sort of comfort in his last harrowing moments. Despite appearing beyond comprehensive thought, Max turned his head a little into the gesture and gasped. Monica suspected it would have been a whimper if he had enough air in his lungs.

The warrior woman leaned forward till her head was against Max's. Certain that he couldn't hear, she began to whisper all the same.

"I'm sorry, Max. I'm sorry it turned out like this," she closed her eyes in shame. "I never should have brought you with me. I didn't plan to, but-"

Memories came to her. Sindain station, reciting the pains of her past, and then- then a hand on her shoulder. Max's hand, stopped in embarrassment but still there reaching out to her, freely given without being asked. Monica smiled and continued to speak.

"I'd been alone for so long. No one was there for me. And then you were there, worried about me, caring about what I said, not thinking about the danger when I asked for help. When you followed me into the forest I meant to send you back, but you promised to go on with me, and I couldn't say no because-" a growing lump in her throat made her pause again. Max's skin was growing cold, and his breathing was so weak she could barely hear it over her own, shuddering with sorrow.

"A-and I don't really care, if there's anything between you and Lin. I didn't mean to be so angry with you. I just felt that for a moment I could stop worrying about everything so much because someone was worrying about me, and then it was as if Lin replaced me. But I didn't really mean to push you away. I still need you Max."

She moved so that she could look into Max dim, unseeing eyes. Monica's gut lurched as she saw he was at the point of death.

"That's why you have to stay, Max. I need you to try and survive, because I don't think I can do this alone. I need _you_, not just anyone. It has to be you b-because-"

Her voice failed her again. Despair loomed overhead as Max's breathing began to grind to a halt.

"Max-" Monica forced the words out. "Oh Max. I think that… I-"

"There's only one thing for it."

Monica was startled, having nearly forgot that Lin was there. She jerked back and turned to the girl as she tried to take in what she'd said.

The moment the warrior woman had moved, Lin took her place and leaned over Max.

And kissed him.

On the lips.

…

Silence for a moment.

Then Monica's outraged scream bounced from cliff wall to cliff wall all the way down the canyon.

The girl bounded to her feet, hands locked into fists, teeth bared, absolutely livid. Once again, anything she'd said or thought about not having a problem with Max and Lin together was tossed out of her mind to make way for the blinding fury that had consumed her.

Monica's hand was on her sword before she was even aware of it. She was just a second away from drawing the weapon and slaying the witch in a single blow.

Before Monica could take one step, a fierce wind kicked up the earth in front of her and forced her back. She fell on her behind amidst the howling pressure and tried to squint through the mini dust storm, only to see the disturbance apparently originating from where Lin and Max were locked together. Lin seemed oblivious to what was going on around her, and Max-

Max was glowing.

Monica started at the sight, rage turning to confusion as her dying friend became the eye of storm. She watched in wonder, unable to react to even the fact that Lin was still kissing him as she strained to comprehend what was happening.

Then it stopped, just as suddenly as it started.

As the dust settled, Lin pulled away and sat on her haunches, wincing slightly as her back creaked in protest. Monica's eyes remained transfixed on Max, whose body somehow showed no sign of injury. Even the blood and rips in his clothes seemed to have vanished.

"What… did…?" Monica began, but words failed her.

In response to her voice, Max's head rolled lazily in Monica's direction and his eyes fluttered open, meeting those of the redhead's squarely.

"Did we win?"

She didn't know whether to laugh or cry, so Monica tried doing both.

Max was alive. Everything was good again.

The knight fell back onto her knees as the relief washed over her, unable to believe her fortune. Lin too had become overwhelmed by the successful recovery, falling deathly silent as she covered her face. Monica tried to reign in both her weak chuckles and streaming tears at the sight of Max's utter confusion as he looked between the two girls, but all she managed to do was give herself hiccups.

"What's going on?" demanded Max. Monica walked forward on her knees and latched her arms around his neck in answer.

"Don't- _hic!_- do that- _hic!_- again," she hissed in his ear. Monica held him tight as though he might disappear if she didn't hang on. She didn't care that Max was now garbling and waving his arms in search of something to do with them. All that mattered was this moment when she made sure he was alright.

Too soon for her liking, Monica pulled away from the embrace and swallowed down her hiccups, her face turning stony to try and dam the tears in her eyes.

"Monica, what's going on?"

The swordswoman frowned.

"What do you mean? Don't you remember?"

"I…" Max struggled as he tried to recall "I remember fighting, then I remember getting hurt, then everything going dark and… cold…"

Max shuddered a little and wrapped his arms around himself. Moved by the sight of his unease, Monica moved towards him to offer comfort, perhaps even hug him again, but Max suddenly turned to look at her.

"Was someone kissing me?"

The spell between them broke. Monica turned on Lin as she reminded herself that the witch was there, and that she had indeed been kissing Max.

"What was that about?" the girl intoned, peeking out through eyes slit with suspicion.

Completely unfazed, Lin wiped at the corners of her eyes and said "It's a trick I learned from my master. 'The breath of life'- the ultimate healing spell. By summoning all types of healing magic at once it is possible to create a force of health restoring power that can heal even those who are fatally wounded."

"Wait, you mean I was- _dying_?"

"Not anymore," Lin's smile was bright, but her eyes were drooping and glazed. "But I've pretty much exhausted my magic, so don't expect me to be much help from now on."

"What? But Lin, you're hurt," Max was at Lin's side in a heartbeat, fussing over the obvious damage to Lin's crumpled torso.

Monica stood back and watched, all suspicion and remorse and the joy of Max's miracle recovery gone from her face, the picture of indifference, as Max's attention was once again devoted solely to Lin. Only the tears left on her cheeks show any sign of emotion from her as she stoutly refused to acknowledge them by wiping them away.

"Oh my God, I think your back's broken," Max flinched away from the purple haired girl as he made his diagnosis. "Monica, can't you do something?"

Monica took a moment to gather her thoughts before reacting. Things were back the way they were. She'd said she didn't care about it. That was truth. She had to keep her anger in check regardless of the situation, and this time it was easy; there was no anger to control, just a gaping, empty feeling in her stomach.

After a silent moment, Monica strode forward dispassionately to investigate the patient. She identified the problem area with ease and used up the rest of what little healing power she had, not thinking to save any for her foot.

This was how Max saw her, she realised. A necessity. A resource. She thought of her heartfelt lamentation as he lay dying and the tears she'd shed, ignored at the drop of a hat so that the one she cried over could help another girl. Stupid of her, letting emotions take control. She was a soldier on a mission; it was time to start acting like one. Max… he was a civilian, not part of her conflict from the future. She needed his help to accomplish the tasks ahead of her, so that made him her charge; her responsibility.

Nothing more.

'_Nothing more.'_

"That's all I can do," she stated as she allowed her healing based magic to flow out of her into Lin. The witch's face contorted as her body jerked with reflex, each part of her spine pulling itself back into its correct position and reaching across the gulf where the living statue's axe had created an earthquake split across the prairie of her back. The girl set her jaw as she tried to climb to her feet, Max helping after his hands pondered over where exactly to hold her by, finally settling under her armpits. Lin managed to stand on her own two legs, but found herself unable to straighten up entirely. She whimpered a little as Max tried to help her to, making the boy let go of her in self-accusingly jerk.

"Isn't there anything else you can do?" Max implored Monica. The flame haired girl shook her head firmly, the rent in her foot a bitter sting as it cried for aid.

"This is all my fault," Max laid a hand gently on Lin's arm as though he could somehow undo her injury with his touch, eyes downcast. "If I hadn't been hurt… you'll barely be able to walk like that."

"It's not as bad as it looks Max," Lin smiled gently as she returned the gesture with her own hand. "This may still heal on its own, and I'll still be able to keep up with you," she positioned her broomstick as a crutch, but finding it too long for that simply held it so that she could push all her weight into the handle as it stabbed into the ground.

Max eyed the arrangement doubtfully and grumbled "I guess. But we're still going to move at a slower pace from now on," he took up position by Lin's free arm "and I'll do what I can to help."

"Thanks Max," Lin smiled reassuringly at him, which he returned. Monica just continued watching, jaw tightening as the pair found a comfortable way to wrap their arms together so that Max could support Lin.

As they prepared to move, Max turned to Monica and asked "Uh, are you okay, Monica?"

For a moment the warrior's hands nearly snapped into fists without thinking, but the feeling went as fast as it arrived. The passion to do react had bled out through a crack in her heart.

"Fine," she said flatly, before turning on her heel and leading the way down the final stretch of the Starlight Canyon.


	19. The Sage who became a star pt 7

**Dark Chronicle**

**Chapter 3: The Sage who became a star**

**Part 7: The Time Warrior**

An arrow head of land jutted from the walls of cliffs that marked where the mountain range ended at the sea. Exposed to the sun, the wedge of land played host to healthy grass and strong trees. From the splayed exit to the Starlight Canyon, Monica stalked out onto the rough cobbled path, eyes skimming the scene for signs of an enemy. Behind her came Lin, nearly bent double, supported by Max as she hobbled along, looking even worse than before for the effort she was making to keep up. With the red haired warrior a few paces ahead, the trio of adventurers made their way to the cliff edge.

"It's kinda late," Max pointed out as the gently rising slope they climbed allowed them to spot dying glow of the sun as the moons took over the sky. Perfect twins of the vast orbs could be seen drifting lazily on the surface of the inky mass of ocean. The growing twilight caused the sky and water to blend together, making features difficult to see, but the echoing sigh of the sea as it breathed its waves against the rocks was clear.

"Yeah, the stars are already coming out," Lin had tilted her head back as far as she could to observe the materialising dot-to-dot pattern. She smile and added wistfully "They bring back so many memories."

Lin stopped walking, the look in her eye suggesting that her mind was elsewhere. Max stopped too, frowning and glancing at Monica who was getting further ahead.

"Er, Lin? You okay?"

Lin jumped a little, then seemed to dither for an answer.

"Crest?" Max ventured. Lin's face fell glum.

"Master Crest and I came here many times," the girl recalled the past with ease now that she was free of the Memo-Eater. "I remember staying out all night with him once, just to watch the Moon Crystal lighting up the sky. It's so beautiful in the dark; the sky shimmers, and the stars are so bright they're like diamonds. Legends say the stars are souls of true sages, living forever to watch over the world. My master believed in them so much that he'd pray to the stars for guidance so that he could become a sage as well."

Lin looked at the sky again and sighed.

"There's no light. The Moon Crystal really is gone."

"Don't worry; it'll be alright," Max assured her, wrapping an arm around her shoulders. "We'll save Crest and the Moon Crystal, and it'll be like nothing ever changed."

Lin looked up and smiled at Max. He answered in kind, and the pair held each other's gaze for a moment, drawing confidence from having someone to share their goal with.

"Excuse me."

Both of them turned to face the voice- a flat, emotionless voice.

"The remains of the lighthouse are here. We shouldn't waste any more time."

Monica moved with a limp as she walked away, and Max winced each time she put her weight on the foot with the jagged hole as though it were in his own. He knew she must have expended all her healing power helping Lin and had been hiding the pain ever since. He hadn't even noticed it till Lin pointed it out as they left the canyon.

He hated to admit that it wasn't the first time that day he'd overlooked Monica in some way.

"Perhaps you should try and speak to her, Max," Lin suggested. "She looks pretty low."

Max looked to the ground and shook his head.

If truth were told, Max had been making an effort to avoid Monica since her ice queen attitude had set in. An ashamed nagging at the back of his head scolded him for not trying to find out exactly what was the matter and cheer her up, but after their arguing that morning and exploding Memo-Eater incident, not to mention that Lin had to point out Monica's current injury to him, Max was afraid he knew what the answer was.

"Right now she probably feels like I'm getting in her way or slowing her down. I think the last thing she wants right now is to speak to me."

Lin looked at Max incredulously.

"What are you talking about Max?"

"If it hadn't been for me she wouldn't have been slimed by that Memo-Eater, and now that she's been hurt and I didn't even think of it, I'll bet she thinks I'm unreliable. She probably wishes I wasn't here at all now."

Lin slapped his head with the back of her hand.

"Ow!"

"Don't be stupid Max; that's got nothing to do with it!" Lin insisted. "She's upset because you've been avoiding her. She thinks you don't care!"

Even Max couldn't fail to realise what she was getting at.

"Lin, I already told you there's nothing between me and her. Things just aren't like that."

"You obviously don't remember what she said when you were hurt and dying." she scolded, and Max looked away. "You two have gotten this far only because you worked together, and from what I've seen I don't think Monica would put up with someone she didn't want hanging around. Do you really think she'd let you be here now if she didn't want or need your help? She's upset with you Max; you've got to talk to her."

Max reluctantly looked at Monica's retreating back. He recalled her explosive outburst against an impatient firbit, and the fury with which she'd fought off every enemy they had encountered so far. It was true that the possibility that she would endure his presence unwillingly was no possibility at all. He just wished he could understand what it was that had driven such a rift between them.

For a moment Max thought Lin's theory of Monica being jealous of the purple haired witch might hold some truth, but he rejected the idea quickly. How could she be attracted to him when their first meeting had happened such a short time ago? People couldn't fall in lo-

Max baulked at the word

- couldn't develop such strong feelings for each other so quickly. He certainly hadn't- at least not any feelings stronger than those of a friend. Of course he could see that Monica was attractive, but there was more to the sort of feelings that Lin was talking about than just physical appearance- things like a great fondness for the girl's personality and behaviour traits, like that fascinating way she expressed her emotions so intensely that they radiated from her like an aura, or the equally impressive way she so dedicated herself to any task she took on no matter how slight, not to mention her charming quality of being able to blend her overflowing passion with a light-hearted and almost 'fun' attitude that had happiness flowing through Max like water. What he'd give to cheer Monica up and hear her making wise and insightful remarks as though it was nothing, or introduce herself into some situation by just calmly diving in and seeing what effect the ripples had (a certain firbit's moustache came to mind), or cast one of her casually optimistic smiles in his direction and make him feel as though he could take on the whole world as long as they were working together.

Max stopped thinking, suddenly realising that his so called argument against Lin's theory was lead ballooning itself. He quickly fixed his resolve in place. He and Monica were friends; partners in battle.

Nothing more

And with all they'd been through so far tempers were bound to flare. Nothing could change that. Right now, Max _knew_ that the only thing he could do was carry on with this quest. The bad feeling between him and Monica was something he had to leave well alone; it would sort itself out in the end, he was sure.

The group of three came to the lighthouse. Or at least, what was left of it. The base was still intact, mainly circular but with four points where pillar like supports clutched the foundations. Fading whitewash doused the sandstone bricks that sloped steeply upwards, with a door set in the side facing the canyon. However, only the lower half of the door still remained, as the upper half and the whole structure of the lighthouse from that point up had been burnt away. Many of the stones on top of the derelict were smeared black, while others had melted and overflowed from their cores to reset into formless shapes. The smell of smoke and ash was still faintly present on the salty air.

"This was where the Moon Crystal resided," Lin, empty voiced, said as they approached. "I was here when it happened. A battleship appeared out of nowhere and blasted it to pieces. Crest tried to fight back, but…"

Max squeezed Lin's hand as her voice trailed off. He glanced around the ruin, expecting to see the ocean lapping at the shore, but the land seemed to just drop away behind the lighthouse. Max realised that the jut of land where the lighthouse was built must have been several tens of feet above sea level.

"That must have been some battleship to attack all the way from down there," Max said as he strained through the night time darkness to gage just how far below the sea was. Monica, on the other hand, seemed in no mood for a speculation.

"It's time for us to act."

She took the bundle of bleached leather from her belt and unfastened it, exposing the precious starglass within.

The ends of the device were shaped with flowerings points, plated in gold. Thin arms connected the two star shapes together, and between then was the crystal bulb, pinched taut in the middle, that held a peculiar grey sand. The three formed a lose circle around it.

"Lin, remember the moment when you were last here at the lighthouse, and turn the starglass over. When you've done that put it on the ground, or the turbulence could tear your hands off. Just keep concentrating on that moment and we'll get there."

Monica's voice was so dead- so cold. Max couldn't bring himself to look at her directly.

Lin took the device and held it for a moment, seeming to lose focus as she cast her mind back. After a second or two she turned the glass over and set it down.

At once, everything distorted, smearing like water thrown across a wall. Max looked around in surprise but couldn't make out anything clearly as it all seemed to be moving sharply in an anti-clockwise direction. His two friends, and even his own hands and body were washing away as a breeze whipped past his ears and stopped him from hearing properly as well. Only the starglass didn't seem at all affected, staying stock still in the middle of the vortex as though the whole world was pivoting on the ghostly ornament.

There was a sort of tremor, the wind became stronger, and then the light became all.

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Two days ago

The lighthouse only reached as high as a chapel spire. There were a couple of storerooms in the core of the building, but most of the interior was taken up by a platform that was raised and lowered by force charms to allow people to travel up and down the tower with ease. Of course, the only people who used it now were the two enchanters currently standing in the circular arena that topped the structure. Master Crest, the lighthouse keeper, and his apprentice Lin had been maintaining the lighthouse and its precious artefact for years.

As she thought about it, Lin found her eyes drawn up to the vast aquamarine orb that was the Moon Crystal. It was nearly as big as the lighthouse, yet it hung with ease in the embrace of the spider web lattice of arcing metal that formed a steadily rotating, four faced chronicle clock.

Despite the beauty of the magic she could feel singing from the heart of the crystal, Lin turned away from it and back to the sight before her. She and her Master had finished studying for the day, not that they done much of it due to Crest allowing them to have most of the day off after the their arrival late yesterday ended with a tiring attack by rogue monsters. They spent most of their time there just enjoying each other's company. Right now they were standing flush against the rail that skirted the lighthouse top. The sun was just starting to melt into the sea and the horizon was the colour of autumn leaves, but Master Crest's attention was drawn to the sky overhead that was tinted by the Moon Crystal's light, watching for the first stars.

Lin took a moment to admire Crest. Almost twice as tall as her and possessing wiry strength from years of scratching a living in the dank cold darkness of Balance Valley, Crest could be pretty intimidating if he wanted. But his face was kind, and his soft blue eyes didn't belong to a brute. His blue black hair ran down to his neck and matched the colour of his overcoat. He was seven years Lin's elder and a hundred times more skilled in magic than her, but their relationship was so close that there might as well have been no difference between them at all. Lin wondered if this was only because they were the last two people (apart from Argo of course) left in the land, but she doubted it. She couldn't imagine feeling any different for her master than she did now.

"The light is only dim now."

Lin jumped, not expecting her master to suddenly start speaking like that. A small smile graced his face, and Lin turned away blushing, as though she could alter the fact she'd clearly been caught staring.

"What was that, Master?" she asked innocently.

"The light of the Moon Crystal doesn't reach very far now, but it grows in time and becomes stronger and learns from the world around it. That's why we must come here often, to allow it to grow from us; for us to become a part of it. And one day, the light from the Moon Crystal will be strong enough to light up the whole world, and when other people from across the world see the light they'll come, and there'll be a town here again."

Lin stared at Crest openly as he made his proclamation, not caring if he saw. His voice was always so clear and full of calm confidence that it sounded as though destiny became incarnate through her master every time he spoke.

"How do you know that, master?"

He turned to look her in the eyes and grinned.

"You could call it a hunch."

The witch laughed.

"You know everything, don't you master?"

Crest laughed in return, and drew Lin into a friendly one armed embrace. She quickly looked back to the sunset, hoping her blush had gone.

Without warning, the sunset vanished behind a curtain of burning blue light; not the soft blue of the Moon Crystal but a deep, ghostly, midnight blue. A mourning wind rushed out from the sea and buffered the tower, pushing the two onlookers onto their back feet.

"What the…?" Crest exclaimed.

Then the light faded, and in its place a terrific sight appeared out of nowhere.

A battleship.

A _flying_ battleship.

A massive deck with a glossed wood body extended down for several storeys, strung with chains from beneath a vast red blimp. At the stern, two rusty engines with as much depth as the decking pumped fumes out in a constant stream, the sound of groaning ogres coming from within. Above the engines sat a pivot mounted turret. Several smaller cannons jabbed from the side of the boat. On the fringes of the vessel, four flame throwing towers jetted their payloads into the balloon, giving it the heat needed to lift the ship so that the deck began to come level with the top of the lighthouse. As it did, the prow became visible to the people on the tower, and they spotted the ship's name written in ash along the side.

_Death Ark_.

"Master, what's that," Lin cried in alarm.

For once, Crest didn't have an answer, but the look on his face said enough. He'd known there were more people left in the world, and that one day they'd flock to the light of the Moon Crystal, but this was far from what he had in mind

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The captain of the _Death Ark_ looked on from the rail that spanned the deck. He adjusted the chunky mecha-monocle welded onto his left eye so he could examine the Moon Crystal up close. He was a human/gorgon hybrid, marked out by his aquamarine skin and wild hair that stood up as though blasted by wind away from his scalp. As such, he felt more at home by the sea than in the air, but this was something he didn't raise objection to. Not that there was anyone to discuss it with- the ship he commanded was exclusively crewed by griffin soldiers. There was only one other sentient being aboard, and the captain had no wish to discuss anything with him.

A heavy tread, steady as a funeral match, walked up behind the captain.

'_Speak of the devil,' _he thought.

A chill ran down his spine as his master stopped next to him. Even without looking the captain could just sense the wrong, unnatural nature of this grand commander of Emperor Griffin's armies. The wind was lashing the deck mercilessly, but the master's cape didn't whip up in response. He didn't sway or struggle to keep his footing no matter how rough the Death Ark sailed. He hadn't eaten or drunk anything since he'd boarded the ship, and apparently hadn't slept once. The captain couldn't help but look down at the deck in front of him out of a twisted sense of curiosity, though he already knew what he'd see. On the deck the captain could see his shadow cast before him by the setting sun behind him.

There was no shadow in front of where his master was standing.

The master was a true lord of darkness. Neither the light of the sun nor the Moon Crystal could touch him. He could bear no shadow; he _was_ shadow.

"So," the blade of a voice cut the air. The captain suppressed a shiver.

"That's the Moon Crystal- in its youth, eh?"

"Yes, sir," the half gorgon observed a device on his wrist. "Exactly one hundred years younger to the day."

"Hmm. A stone that can show both past and future," he turned and walked away as though in disgust, but his voice held a cruel mirth "even though all there is to see is darkness and despair."

The captain forced himself not to have any thoughts on that, just in case it turned out that his master could read minds as well. Besides, his thoughts were more focussed on 'What next'. He knew why they were here, but he could not help but wonder what he could discover if he were allowed to examine the Moon Crystal. Perhaps if he-

"Destroy it!"

The captain jumped, that cold steel voice cutting him to the bone.

"Those were Griffin's orders," the master reminded him icily, as though knowing his opinions weren't in conscience with the task set to them.

The captain quickly tried to empty his head and waved a signal to the stern of the ship. As soon as he did, the turret mount swivelled in place and let rip with a triple salvo of cannon fire.

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The barrage smashed into the side of the lighthouse and detonated. Fire bloomed from the impact craters and nearly ripped the entire building out of the ground.

Crest had been moving as the cannon had turned to face them. He been struck lightly by some debris but was pleased to see he'd successful shielded Lin by pinning her to the ground a moment before the attack. Now he stood and faced the threat.

"I don't know who they are," he growled as he summoned his cast iron staff out of nowhere "but they're not here to stay."

The rumble of the lift in motion caused him to spin round. He readied himself for whatever it might be, just as two people arrived on the lighthouse.

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Max had told Lin to wait outside, reasoning her injured back would put her too much at risk if there was fighting to be done. Monica certainly had no complaints, but it was only when the moving platform came to a halt that she remembered the past Lin was still here.

Monica was _not_ in the mood for irony.

As the stone disc stopped in the middle of the open top of the lighthouse, Monica observed the two people standing there. There was Lin of course, looking around in confusion as a savage attack came from one side and two strangers appeared on another. There was also a well groomed man with her brandishing a flanged headed staff. There was only one person it could be.

'_Crest is a guy?'_ she thought, trying to cast her mind back as something didn't quite ring true.

"Who are you?" the man cut her off mid thought. "Tell me who you are and what you're doing here."

"Hold on; we're here to help," Max held up his hands in a passive gesture. Crest clearly wasn't gone to trust them on words alone now that he and the Moon Crystal were under attack, so Monica took a step forward to get his attention and held out her arm in front of her.

As she'd hoped, his eyes flashed with recognition and his staff lowered slightly.

"What in the…?" he looked mystified. "Is that an Atlamillia?"

"We'll explain later," Monica walked towards Crest, and though he was still uncertain he didn't attack. Lin, trusting Crest's judgement, didn't try to intervene.

Monica walked right past the mage without incident and went as close to the lighthouse railing as she could without getting near the fire. Monica's mind was already locked into battle mode and extraneous thought and emotion had fled. Behind her Max was making some attempt to introduce them both rapidly to the sorcerers, but Monica ignored him as she assessed the tactical situation.

The _Death Ark_ loomed before her, holding fire but clearly not finished in its work. She knew the ship had to have come from her time; she wondered if it was merely coincidence that it was about now on this very day that she herself was arriving at the Sindain time gate on her mission to fine the red Atlamillia holder. There was no obvious weak point on the ship except the engine. She spotted a few Griffin soldiers on deck- nothing she couldn't handle. There was also a figure standing at the rail, his striking blue skin and hair marking him as a male gorgon hybrid, and behind him was-

Monica staggered back at the sight.

"Monica, what's wrong?" Max's hand steadied her quickly. Monica couldn't answer for a moment, overcome by the shock that had knifed her.

"That's…" she managed weakly. For a moment she considered the possibility that she was seeing things, but there was no mistaking it- that darkly handsome face, that cruel smile, sword grey eyes, a thin and subtle body concealed beneath a sweeping cloak, and a birth mark of runes across his brow.

Memory pierced Monica's stunned psyche, and with it came anger. She knew this warrior; his name was legendary. Not his birth name- Gaspard supposedly. No, she knew his new name. His _true_ name.

Monica's eyes darkened, and when she spoke her voice was as hard as hate.

"- the Dark Assassin."

Another cannon round punched the lighthouse, sending all those on top reeling.

"Master!" Lin wailed, diving for the safety of Crest as the building wobbled and threatened to collapse.

"It's alright Lin," Crest assured her as he climbed back to his feet. He laid his hands on Lin shoulders and said "Just stay here and protect yourself as best you can; I'll deal with this."

He then turned to Max and Monica.

"If you really are here to help, keep Lin safe for me while I stop that ship."

"What are you going to do?" asked Max.

"I'm going to use the crystal."

"No, Master!" Lin cried, but Crest was already leaping to an impossible height, up to a ledge in front of the Moon Crystal.

"Monica, what do we do?" Max turned to his friend, but she wasn't listening to the drama taking place on the lighthouse. She was looking across the flames to the vast ship that filled the horizon. Somehow, the Dark Assassin seemed to return her gaze. Despite the distance his features were clear as day to her. He sneered in her direction, but she could tell the contemptuous expression had no effect on his eyes of steel. She recalled that smug grin and unyielding eyes from a lifetime ago, in a castle where a great man lay dead on the floor as the assassin stood brazenly over him.

"Monica?" asked Max uncertainly.

The swordswoman's run up was followed by slamming her foot into the railing, heedless of the spreading fire. She pushed with her leg, and then she was gone, magically propelled into oblivion.

"MONICA!" Max screamed as she soured over the cliff edge towards the battleship. She ignored him. He had Lin now; let him worry about her.

Monica drew her sword as she came down, and in a single blow cut through a pair of griffin soldiers unfortunate enough to be in her way as she landed. She rolled through the mess and came to her feet looking to face the other soldiers who began to converge on her.

The sound of a metal gauntlet slamming down on the deck rail caused the attackers to halt. As one, they fled down hatches into the innards of the ship, leaving only the ships captain and the Dark Assassin.

"Stowaway," the vassal of Griffin mocked her. He turned to the gorgon captain and said "Jamming, go inside and continue as planned; we're leaving nothing to chance. I'll handle this."

"Yes sir," Jamming bowed his head in submission, before vanishing in the fiery rings of a teleport beam.

"Dark Assassin!" Monica challenged the man. "Remember me? It's Monica- Monica Raybrandt."

The assassin held her gaze with his cold eyes and said "Raybrandt…" as though testing the name; tasting it.

"So, you're King Raybrandt's girl?"

He grinned a grin that almost made it to his eyes and gave her and exaggerated bow.

"My, my. Imagine meeting a princess out here. Oh please, your majesty- you may call me Gaspard."

"Dark Assassin, you destroyed my kingdom, and you murdered my father! Now you're going to pay!"

"Murdered?" the voice feigned wounded innocence, before being quickly replaced by the same cruel arrogance. "Now that hurts. Your father and I fought, but he simply wasn't good enough to beat me."

Monica bristled at the affront to her family honour and shouted back "My father would never have lost to you, in a _fair_ fight!"

Now Gaspard's smile faded completely into an irritated frown.

"Well then, why don't you try yourself, if you can stop crying over daddy for a few minutes."

"I'm a Raybrandt- we don't wallow in self-pity," Monica said proudly as she raised her sword. "Swift vengeance is the only grief we know. Get ready, _Gaspard_!"

For the first time the killer's eyes showed emotion, gleaming with the relish of the inevitable hostility. He reached to his belt and drew from it a sword unlike any other.

The burnt black, skeletal hilt was swallowed up Gaspard's massive gauntlet. From this base the back edge of the blade grew as straight and firm as a spine, save for a jutting claw just beneath the head. The opposite edge of the swords body was a slender and curvaceous, fattening into a pregnant swell at the tip. The blade was so perfectly sharp it probably would have sparkled, except that the deep rusty red of the weapon gobbled up any light that might have reflected from it. Near the base of the blade an engraving, inlaid with plundered ivory, proudly proclaimed the swords name.

_Infidel_.

Monica knew this weapon by reputation- a gloriously blasphemous instrument, tempered in hell fires and sanctified in the blood of innocents a hundred times over. It was a relic of dark histories, far longer and heavier than her own blade. She refused to be intimidated.

She leapt forward and swung her sword at an angle, aiming to slice the assassin from shoulder to hip. He dodged aside. She followed through with a blow at waist height. He jumped it, demonstrating incredibly unnatural agility. Monica tried to fool him with another waist high blow as he landed, but this time the Dark Assassin blocked the attack with his own sword. He raised an eyebrow as they locked blades, surprised by her strength, before shoving her back with his gauntlet encased hand. As Monica recovered her balance, Gaspard struck, _Infidel_ lashing out twice in rapid succession, illogically fast for such a wide sword. The young princess was forced to back flip twice to get out of the way. Then Gaspard leapt high into the air, coming down like an avalanche on Monica who only just had time to dive clear.

They turned to face each other. Monica was stunned. Ever since she'd began her quest she imagined this moment of vengeance, never once worrying about the fearsome reputation that clung to the Dark Assassin like a shadow. She had never allowed herself to comprehend that this murder's skill may have been more than a match for her father's. In her mind Gaspard had killed her father in cold blood, on unequal terms, and there was no question about it. Now, just after duelling with him for a few seconds, she knew him to be the warrior he truly was, and she knew she could die here and now.

The Dark Assassin lunged, and Monica rushed to meet him.

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Back on the lighthouse, Max looked on in horror as Monica went toe to toe with the towering Dark Assassin, highlighted by the ever growing fire. Their swords vanished into cascades of flying sparks, and they skated across the deck as if it were an ice rink.

"Max, watch out for those cannons!"

Max snapped out of his trance at the sound of Lin's voice. The four cannon mouths in the side of the airborne battleship were angling their way.

"Stay back," Max instructed as he backpedalled away from the lighthouse railing, using a hand to guide Lin to the centre of the arena. There were four loud _'FWOOOMs!'_, and fireballs soured through the air, creating glowing arch shapes as they were lobbed on top of the lighthouse.

"Don't worry," Max assured Lin. "There's only stone up here. Those fires will burn themselves out in a few minutes."

Lin nodded in agreement at first, but then squeaked and pointed urgently at the fireballs.

Max couldn't believe his eyes.

From the hearts of each flaming mass, skulls with rigamortis frozen grins had appeared to bob like ships caught on a burning ocean. The fires moved to mass under them, holding them at the peak of the heat wash. Then flaming arms grew from them, then legs, and then all three of the fireballs clambered to their feet and began advancing on Max and Lin, the skulls tumbling at random in all directions as they moved.

"Max, we have to defend Master Crest so that he can work his magic," Lin pointed to the lead living fireball, specifically to the skull held aloft on its body. "Try taking out the skulls; they must be at the heart of these enchantments."

"Alright," Max composed himself. He drew his classic gun, took aim and fired. The bullet went straight through the skull and out the other side without leaving a mark.

"Huh?"

"They practically made of fire, Max. We can't just blast them."

"Fine then," Max grimaced at the monstrosities as he holstered his gun and took his wrench in a two handed grip. "Guess we have to do this the old fashioned way."

Lin balanced her broomstick in a combat position and stepped up next to Max.

"Okay, Lin. Let's do this!"

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A dreadful chorus of clanging, shrieking metal joined the endless bass note of the _Death Ark_ as the Princess of Raybrandt and the Dark Assassin danced to the music of war. Monica's sword left the air vibrating it moved so fast, yet she was barely able to keep up with her partner in this deadly tango. She'd pirouetted out of the way of a dozen strikes, only to find Gaspard quickstepping into attack range time and time again. She'd tried a handful of powerful blows to break through his defence, only to have them turned into lifts as Gaspard used his superior strength to sweep her off her feet.

'_This is impossible. He's outmanoeuvring me in every way.'_

Monica was now doing her best to avoid coming into contact with the man, the ache in her wrists testament to the fact she could not meet the Dark Assassin strength to strength. She did her best to look for some sort of flaw; a gap in his defence, or predictable moves. The man gave her nothing. Monica seethed at her foe, feeling as if he'd deceived her. His thin, gangly frame didn't look capable of the pure physical force he possessed, and his eyes, the way the pupils seemed constantly enlarged proffered that he was somehow permanently intoxicated. But this man's mind was a quick as a whip and as sharp as diamond, and his strength was allowing him to lead in their dance of death as the warrior woman already began to tire.

"I'm flattered that you hold me responsible for the destruction of the Raybrandt capital," the Dark Assassin taunted as their blades locked again, Monica straining with everything she had while her opponent pushed her back with a one handed grip. "Personally, I wasn't going to claim that victory until I defeated you as well. I thank you for coming to me."

Monica's fury bounded up a notch, and she unleashed a devastating flurry of cuts that would have reduced a man to mincemeat. Gaspard deflected them all.

The warlord sprang away from the battle and landed nearly five metres away. Monica took that as a moment for her to recover, only to end up hurling herself aside with abandon as a string of pale blue eruptions of light dashed along the deck from where Gaspard had just stomped one of his armour encased feet.

'_Okay, so he's a battle mage as well.'_

Monica's head collided with the waist high wall that skirted the deck. The world spun as the side of her face numbed in pain. Through bleary eyes she spied Gaspard closing for the attack, sword coming up, around and down to split her skull in two. The force behind the attack was evident, but the style was brutish, and Monica had no trouble in raising her sword to redirect the attack. Even so, the weight of the blow dragged the girl's sword with it as it skewered to her left. There was a 'WHUMP' and the passage on Monica's sword ended.

That's when she realised she'd been duped.

The thug like carelessness of the Dark Assassin's killing blow had drawn the girl's sword right where he wanted it, as the long sword had now been jammed deep into the ships railing where it could not be removed without a considerable amount of concentrated effort, something Monica couldn't afford as her arch rival's free hand clamped around her throat.

Monica grabbed at Gaspard's crushing fingers with one hand, even as she knew she would never break his grip. The circumstances were dire, but she was a warrior, and a royal one at that; she acted fast, and could think even faster. With but a thought she triggered a glut of icy cold from her five-star armlet that spread down her arms and flowed out of her hands. The act left the Dark Assassin scowling as the joints in his left gauntlet were frozen in a mere half death grip, while the _Infidel_ ended up becoming glued to the frozen metal of Monica's stuck fast long sword. He made one attempt to pull his relic weapon free, and Monica took the opportunity to kick him in the groin.

The Dark Assassin grunted as his eyes widened, but then he smirked as he shrugged off the crippling pain without effort. Monica boggled at him.

'_Are you serious! ?'_

Gaspard left the Infidel where it was and reached towards Monica's face. The girl forced herself to ignore the pressure around her neck and used both hands to keep the Dark Assassin's hand back. The strangling hand still made her gasp for breath but couldn't squeeze any more, making the hand reaching for her face priority. She managed to keep the gauntlet back, hovering just over her head. The Dark Assassin snarled triumphantly.

"Just what I was hoping for."

Before Monica could fathom his meaning, Gaspard's thumb stroked along the side of his index finger, and a rectangular sliver of metal detached itself from the gauntlet and fell. It left a slice as it passed Monica's lip during its descent, resulting in a spurt of blood that followed the blade as fell, to Monica's horror, into her mouth.

'_Oh God! I'm going to swallow it! It's going to cut up my innards!'_

Monica's tongue moved almost with a mind of its own as it tried to catch the tiny blade. It flipped clear of the appendage and over her teeth, nicking the inside of her cheek. It slid further back. She tried to bite down on it, but the choke hold kept her jaw reflexively open. An involuntary cough knocked the sliver free of Monica's back teeth and it followed the pull of gravity towards either her gullet or her windpipe. The princess reached her tongue back as far as she could, desperation fuelling her effort, and she just managed to trap the thing against the side of her mouth.

Monica gasped- her tongue felt like it was being burned as the razor dug into it. She hacked as a rivet of blood began to stream down her throat and fill the back of her nostrils with its metallic scent, but she held herself as still as possible, afraid the slightest diversion would cause her to loosen her grip.

Gaspard certainly wasn't loosening his.

The Dark Assassin held the younger warrior in place. She tried once to reach back and pluck out the blade with one hand, but the assassin's sharpened metal fingers probed towards her eyes and she didn't dare let go after that.

They were trapped like that. Stalemate. Except the Dark Assassin could afford to wait forever. Monica didn't have that luxury. The lighthouse was still on fire and an entire army of griffin soldiers could come storming onto the deck at any moment. Something had to happen, and it had to happen soon, because Monica's tongue was getting tired.

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Max continued to fight off the living torches, even as his wrench began to melt with the unnatural heat that pulsed from each of his adversaries. He and Lin had 'beheaded' a dozen of the flame creatures a piece, but more and more were fired from the side of the _Death Ark_, slowly outnumbering them.

"There's too many! We need Crest's help!" Max yelled to Lin as she dived forward to swipe a skull clear of its flaming body. The magic of her broom had kept it safe from flame damage so far.

"He's too busy. His power is the only thing that's stopped the fire spreading any further than it already has."

By now half the lighthouse was in flames, but considering the number of fire inducing rounds that were pelting from the side of the _Death Ark_, it was impressive that the whole thing hadn't collapsed, much less been consumed. Max didn't feel very impressed as he was forced away from one side of the arena into a steadily shrinking semicircle of stable ground.

"We've got to try and do something about that ship. Can't you use some magic to clear this place out?"

Lin shook her head.

"Water, or water based magic, might take out a few of them, but…"

Max looked around for something that might give them an advantage. He looked up towards the Moon Crystal, and the slowly rotating chronicle clock. An idea began to fester in his mind. Just a small idea, like a bit of grit irritating the back of his head, but like a bit of grit that grows into a pearl inside an oyster, in Max's mind the idea grew into a fully-fledged masterstroke. He looked rapidly over the overhead girders, and a nearby pillar, and recalled both his engineering knowledge and his eventful exit from Flotsam's circus.

He smiled to himself.

"Get ready to use as much water magic as you can in one go, Lin. I'm going to need some space."

Without bothering to explain, Max abandoned his charge and hurried over to one of the arch shaped pillars that held the ever ticking chronicle clock above them. It was just ridged enough that he was able to find purchase with his fingertips and scramble up the side.

"Where are you going! ?" Lin panicked as more of the fire warriors encroached on her. Max did his best to ignore her plight- it was for their survival he'd left the fight to try what he hoped would be a decisive blow against the enemy.

From where he stood nearly level with Crest's position, Max quickly found that the pillars holding up the metal cradle held weights and counter weights hanging from short chains, the complicated arrangement allowing the structure to move with its clockwork motion- just as he'd suspected. All it took was to wrench a few of them, and the multi faced clock started to speed up. Max took a deep breath, remembered the way he'd had to clamber through the rafters of Flotsam's circus to escape his killer clowns-

'_I hope this works the same way.'_

- and then leapt onto the turning metal ring, slamming his wrench over the top of it so that he could hang like an orang-utan. His right hand, covered in sweat, immediately started to slip, while his left blistered against the semi melted head, but he held on for dear life as the clock ticked him over the flaming automatons.

"Lin, I need somewhere to land!" Max yelled to his partner as he neared the far end of the lighthouse arena. He could only hang on for so long, and he'd only have one chance to get this right. Lin shouted something back at him but he couldn't clearly make it out. He was now hanging over the point where Monica had jumped from, and he was concentrating on aiming his legs.

A burst of watery blue light flashed in Max's peripheral vision. A ball of magic weaved through the ranks of the enchanted flames and burst into a shower of energy droplets. At least six of the magical enemies were wiped from existence, leaving a small patch of the lighthouse clear.

Max dropped to the floor, bending his knees as he landed as instructed by his martial art lessons. His legs wobbled like jelly as he lurched for the rail. Moving fires were responding, reshaping so that they were facing the boy, flames licking so that arms were reaching for him, skulls tossed about to throw fleeting glances his way. Max braced himself against the dampened rail, the Jurak pistol finding his hand. He took aim at the _Death Ark_, searching for a weakness. Nothing stood out, even to his analytical mind. The flame monsters moved closer, so close that their yellow bodies appeared to darken to red- almost to black. The dark flames moved unstoppably towards Max, who tried to ignore them even as the heat blasted him over and over again.

"Come on- _Come on_!" Max urged as he sought to find some part of the battleship that might be vulnerable to his fire. Sweat crawled into his eye and messed up his aim. Panic and desperation found its level, and Max took his shot, unleashing a streak of emerald power towards the nearest cannon hatch.

The shot spoke more of forlorn hope than skill or good thinking. The _Death Arks_ cannons were nearly impervious to anything but an even larger cannon, and the hatches were armour-plated against ranged attacks and magic. A single shot could have no effect.

Expect that this wasn't just a single shot. This was _Max's_ single shot, and Max's super luck was on hand to make the difference.

At that very instant, the griffin soldiers manning the particular cannon Max was aiming for detected a slight flaw in the piece of ordnance and pulled it back from the gun port to inspect it. The bright laser beam entered the ship and sank into a crate holding ammunition belts. The blast cooked off the bullets and sent high calibre rounds ricocheting in all directions, downing mindlessly phlegmatic griffin soldiers and soaring, inexorably, into the open doorway of the powder magazine.

The resulting explosion split the air with its sound and rocked the _Death Ark_.


	20. The Sage who became a star pt 8

**Dark Chronicle**

**Chapter 3: The Sage who became a star**

**Part 8: Broken Steel**

A great mouth tore open in the side of the flying battleship. The roar from within was the voice of a vast explosion, and fire vomited out in great spurts. Even the Dark Assassin's unnatural ability to resist the tilting of the ship couldn't anticipate the sudden quaking. He slipped and rolled away across the deck, his frozen grip around Monica's neck forced open.

Monica stumbled but managed to grab hold of her sword that was still stuck in the deck rail. The razor blade that Gaspard had dropped into her mouth jolted free as she fell and tumbled towards Monica's throat. The girl fell to her knees instantly, hoping and praying the blade would fall out; she didn't dare try and choke it up, imagining the damage caused by her gullet contracting around the metal sliver.

There was a tense second as Monica hung her head, mouth wide open, and nothing happened. For a moment Monica was sure she'd swallowed it, expected the pain to strike suddenly and to die in agony. But she forced herself to wait, even as she saw the assassin advancing on her again.

Then she felt it.

The blade unstuck from the back of her mouth and dropped out onto the deck. Monica let it a shuddering sigh of relief. That had been too close by far.

The brief pause she needed to gather her wits proved to be too long as Gaspard's metal boot struck her in the stomach and slammed her against the railing again.

"Enough of this! Now you die, girl!"

He reached for his sword and as soon as he touched the hilt his gauntlet lit up with flames. With a flick of the wrist, Gaspard pulled _Infidel_ free of the melting ice that had attached his sword to Monica's. The girl's own sword was jerked loose by the movement. Monica spotted her chance and wrenched her long sword from the rail, just in time to block an attack that would have cleaved her head in two. She sprung to her feet but the Dark Assassin went after her, his blows getting faster and stronger, yet not once did he lose control. Monica quickly abandoned all hope of waiting for an opening and did what she could to stay out of Gaspard's reach.

Spying a rope dangling from the overhanging blimp, Monica dived onto it and scurried up, only stopping to cut the rope behind her. A very put out Dark Assassin was dropped roughly back onto the deck.

Monica was just congratulating herself on so abruptly aborting the Dark Assassin's pursuit, when she heard the man speaking into some manner of transmitter.

"Jamming, I don't care what condition the ship's in- complete our mission and it won't matter. Deploy the secret weapon, _now_!"

He ended the transmission without waiting for a reply, and Monica cursed herself. She'd been so focussed on fighting Gaspard she hadn't so much as given a thought to the overall purpose of this confrontation; to change the past by preventing Crest's death. Now, depending on what this 'secret weapon' was, it could be too late.

Before Monica could make another move, she found herself jerked about as something heavy put its full weight onto the end of the rope.

The Dark Assassin had jumped the distance and was now climbing after her.

Monica leapt from the rope onto a nearby piece of rigging, and the chase began anew.

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The swivelling turret that had sat silent since its volley at the start of the battle became active again.

"That cannon! Master Crest might not be able to withstand that sort of attack," Lin began panicking. "The Moon Crystal can only be used for so much."

"Don't worry Lin; it doesn't look like they're aiming at us."

From where they stood on top of the lighthouse where the last of the dark flames had been purged, the huge Death Ark cannon was pointing straight at them. An ominous sight, but it was clear to Max that the arc of the cannons fire would take the shots far below their position. Unless the cannon was about to fire a round that weighed absolutely nothing at all, the shot was going nowhere near them.

Then the turret belched, and instead of a high explosive a swollen, stormy cloud choked from the vast barrel and headed on an unerring course- despite the wind- towards Max and Lin.

"Gas attack!" Max screamed, and both he and the purple haired witch lunged aside of the oncoming cloud, Max one way, Lin the other.

The ball of gas streaked into the centre of the arena and stopped, not billowing out in all directions but staying together, containing itself.

Max was looking for any sign of another attack, when the cloud suddenly seemed to gain a mind of its own and advanced on Lin. The girl didn't even have time to get to her feet before she was engulfed.

"What is this stuff?" she choked, and pointed her broomstick as if to cast a spell.

And then she was screaming, clutching at her head with a look of absolute horror.

"Lin, what's wrong! ?" Crest cried from his perch, stopping just before he was about to expunge the last of the flames eating away at the lighthouse.

Before Max's eyes, a part of the fog intensified in mass, became solid of its own accord, and then a face he recognised appeared above Lin.

The bulbous head of the dreaded Memo-Eater reared up above the stricken girl, as fish eyed and filth ridden as it had been when Max and Monica first fought it. The wide maw closed sharply around Lin's head as though biting her, and although its teeth passed through the flesh with ghostly quality, the witch screamed even harder, buckling as if mortally wounded.

"Hold on Lin! I'm coming!" Crest yelled out as he swung down to another platform.

Max watched the scene, frozen as realisation hit him.

Of course, this was the moment when Crest died; when the enemy from the future unleashed the Memo-Eater to destroy Lin's memories of the man who would become the great sage. This attack from the Memo-Eater was the catalyst for defeat.

'_I've got to stop this!'_

"Crest, stay where you are!" Max called out, waving his arms frantically. Crest paused momentarily, and the inventor pressed his point.

"Without your power nothing's going to stop the ship's attack! You've got to hold them off! I'll help Lin!"

Max charged, with no idea how he was going to stop this memory eating monster. Lin's screaming was already fading out, her face gaunt and her eyes reflecting the Memo-Eater's blank gaze. Max lunged towards the apparition with his wrench held high. The Memo-Eater was just rearing back for another bite when Max landed in front of Lin. He swung his wrench into the hideous face, but the weapon ghosted right through. The Memo-Eater bit down again, and this time it was coming for Max.

Max fell to his knees as the spectral teeth vanished into his head and a blinding pain ran through him like lava. Except it wasn't actually pain, more like a memory of pain. But a pain so deep and agonising that it swamped his mind.

Max could feel the Memo-Eater sifting through his thoughts as memories and sensations came unbidden. He tried to resist the intrusion by force of will and focus on the sights and sounds in front of him, but his attempts were drowned out by the mind pain as the Memo-Eater bit again. Blood trickled out of his nose and sleep filled his eyes.

Max groaned in agony. He reached out blindly. He needed help. There was someone nearby who could help him, but trying to form words was torturous. He strained against the building pressure in his head, because he knew that there was one person he could rely on to drive off the monster that was burning out his mind, and she wasn't too far away.

"Mmm…" he mumbled "m…Monica…"

But he couldn't remember her face. It had vanished from his mind. Max's life was running in reverse, and as each memory came to mind it became lost in an instant. One by one Max's thoughts were plucked from his head and cast away callously. With Lin still incapacitated and Crest having returned to his post, nothing could stop the slow destruction of Max's mind as the years he spent in Palm Brinks vanished in a flash.

From among the thoughts coming to the forefront of his mind, something caught his attention. It was gone before he could focus on it, but he searched for that aspect again as he sensed it in another memory, and then another. By now the mechanic's only remaining memories were from his early childhood, a time so long ago he'd never clearly remembered it until now. He was fast approaching the point where there'd be nothing left, but he fought on, trying to find that one thing that stood out in his mind while all else was being destroyed.

And then something miraculous happened- Max remembered the point of his birth.

The moment was staggering; the trauma, the shock, but also the joy and glory of being alive. Max had never recalled this memory in his life, and yet somehow he'd never forgotten it either. He had been so weak and helpless, so confused by the very audacity of his existence.

And then she was holding him in her arms, and everything felt right.

The face of Max's mother was soft and kind, and so beautiful, framed by glossy brown curls, perfect diamond blue eyes shining with love. How could he have forgotten that face, the face that had melted the ice heart of Gerald Zelmite and brought comfort to the infant Max all his early life?

The Memo-Eater dug its teeth into the memory, but this time Max fought back.

'_This-memory-is-MINE!'_

Howling in his mind, Max threw his will against that of the Memo-Eater's. The terrible monster faltered at the riposte and its form faded a little, but it bit down on Max's head again. The boy nearly fainted as the power of the Memo-Eater crushed his thoughts.

_He looked up at his mother, her almond shaped face sparkling through the hazy blur of the world. Another face accompanied hers as his father pulled his mother into an embrace, tears of joy streaming from both their eyes._

"_It's a boy, Elaine," said Gerald Zelmite, choked with emotion, granite hard countenance nowhere to be seen._

_Together the couple radiated such love and hope and compassion that the first moments of his life was a wave of emotion flowing over him, washing away the chaos of his birth._

"_Yes Gerald," Elaine Zelmite wheezed, fighting exhaustion so that she could devote all due attention to her baby. "It's out little Max."_

"NO! !" Max leapt at the monstrous apparition, wrench thrashing and free hand grabbing for its neck. The pressure of the mental attack reached such a pitch that blood was positively spurting from his nostrils and running down the back of the throat, but he ignored the pain and spat out a mouthful of red as he fought with everything he had.

This time the Memo-Eater didn't retaliate. Every blow and even the gobbet of blood that Max had spat went straight through the beast's translucent form, yet it fell to the lighthouse floor. Its mouth stretched wide in a silent scream and its snot dribbling proboscis flailed in panic. The monster's movements gradually slowed and it let out what sounded like a tired sigh, and then it simply vanished from sight.

As soon as the Memo-Eater disappeared the pain left Max's head, and all of his memories were suddenly back in place. The boy fell on all fours and gasped for air. His energy was totally spent. If any more dark flames appeared on the lighthouse he'd be done for. Beside him, Lin was also recovering.

"W-what... was that thing?"

"A memory eating monster. I think it's gone now, but this fight isn't over yet."

Together they climbed to their feet and looked out towards the Death Ark.

"What are we going to do about that ship?" asked Max.

"It looks like Master Crest is already dealing with that," Lin pointed up to where the mage stood in front of the Moon Crystal, chanting incantations now that the fire had been extinguished. "He's summoning some sort of fell magic to destroy it."

"Destroy it?" Max turned sharply to her.

"Yes; with the power of the Moon Crystal, my Master could probably obliterate that ship in one go. He's not really one for war, but if they attack again they might destroy the crystal. We can't let them do that."

"Wait! You can't destroy that ship either!" Max seized Lin's arm. "Monica's still on board!"

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The princess of Raybrandt leapt for a rope, but found herself falling as fire snaked up the length of it. The Dark Assassin was back on the deck where he'd grabbed the end of the rope with his fire emitting gauntlet. Now Monica was falling right towards him.

The girl tucked herself in and flipped upside down, falling like a dart towards the white haired killer with the tip of her blade leading. He in turn altered his tactics and raised his sword high to strike over Monica's own sword and at her stomach. Monica twisted at the last moment, knocking _Infidel_ away and landing on her feet. She tried to cut the assassins throat, but with a simple move he stroke the blade away and his counter attack hurled Monica back several feet.

They had been fighting so long now that the sunset had turned to twilight. Monica was pushing her stamina to the limit. That she was still performing effectively was nothing short of amazing. The Dark Assassin, by contrast, hadn't even broken sweat- he wasn't even out of breath!

Monica stayed in a guard position as Gaspard approached. She could barely believe that a moment ago she was convinced that he was nothing but a coward who won his battles by stabbing his enemies in the back.

'_How could I have thought he would be a pushover? This man's name is everywhere back home!'_

The Dark Assassin was the very centre point of the dark armies of the future, the evil genius behind Emperor Griffin's tyranny. How could she have been so naïve to think that this apotheosis of terror and destruction could ever be overcome in single combat?

Monica shook herself. That was not the way to think. She was a Raybrandt. She would not fear her opponent. She would defeat him soundly and that would be that. There was no room for doubting herself.

The mountain of a warrior then rammed into Monica, forcing her onto one knee.

"This is the end for you, your majesty," Gaspard's face, only inches from Monica's, sneered a sneer that once again didn't make it to his eyes. They remained cold and hard- implacable, invincible.

Monica strained to hold him back, but the Dark Assassin pushed against her defence, pressing her own sword back towards her face. If she couldn't find a way to overturn their deadlock, her head would be cut in two by her own blade, or she'd simply be crushed where she knelt.

Monica released one hand from her sword hilt. The length of shining metal lurched closer. She accepted the risk as her free hand scrabbled for her ankle, where her concealed light-silver dagger lay waiting to be plunged into the hated Gaspard's flesh. Too late she remembered she had given the weapon to Max. Her ankle was bare, and the two locked swords were falling towards her, about to end the conflict.

"Rejoice, Princess," Gaspard laughed. "You'll die a warrior, and your body shall be returned to Raybrandt castle for your final rest."

Monica snarled grimly.

"Yes I will."

The girl closed her eyes in concentration as the slightest touch of her approaching sword cut away strands of hair.

"But not today!"

Then Gaspard was being catapulted across the deck, a blood red and silver stone skipping wood instead of water. Monica's sword shuddered in her hand as the electrical charge she'd fired into it from her armlet refused to dissipate. It required somewhere to be channelled to, and apparently the Dark Assassin was just the man for the job.

The man was just getting to his feet when another blow came at him. He raised his sword and weathered the new surge of pain that travelled through him, holding himself to the floor this time by sheer force of will. He countered, but Monica dodged by stepping within his the arc of his sword slash and rammed the pommel of her sword into his ribs. The man stumbled; the electricity had finally stunted his zeal, but he was already picking up the pace again.

With a cry of rage, the Dark Assassin hurled a massive blow at Monica. She raised her blade to block, but as she did a wisp of light indicating some dark spell travelled the length of the _Infidel_, and as the two swords met the amazon's blade snapped in the middle.

A pang of sorrow befell Monica as she regarded the broken shaft of long sword. No time for remorse, she back flipped away from a second sweeping cut. She plunged the ruined blade into the planks and used it as a platform to leap high into the air and deliver a spinning kick to Gaspard's face. She might as well have spat at him for all the good it did, and before she could land on the deck again something seized her foot- the foot with a yawning wound created by a weekdayz dagger, which had become so painfully during her acrobatics that it had gone numb.

'_Oh no,'_ Monica mentally groaned as she flopped in Gaspard's grip.

The Dark Assassin lashed the princess's entire body against the deck like a whip. His grip on her foot reignited scalding agony from the lingering wound, and as he slammed Monica down, splinters danced away from the impact site.

"You can't win against me, your majesty," the assassin gloated. He kept a tight hold of Monica's foot, and while he did she was completely unable to get up again and fight, not that she was in much condition too.

The girl lay helplessly aboard the Death Ark. Even the very slightest of movements caused pain. Each breath was like boiling water running through her. Every heartbeat was a pulse of agony across her body. She could neither reach the Dark Assassin nor muster the energy to use magic against him. She thought longingly of her priceless dagger, just perfect for throwing at Gaspard's exposed chest as he raised his sword for a final blow.

If only she hadn't have given it to Max. Without it she was now out of weapons. A spiteful thought blamed Max for her predicament, but she pushed it away. She didn't want to think badly of Max right now- not when her doom seemed to be so close at hand. Instead, she reminded herself of the good that had come from him, all the help he'd lent so selflessly to her mission, how he'd supported her in moments of despair (his replacing her with Lin notwithstanding), and that gift he'd given her, made by his own hand- the bell trigger.

Monica's hand dived to her belt in a frantic scrabble for the one weapon that she had left, a weapon that she'd completely forgotten about, not being used to having such a thing. The Dark Assassin was only a heartbeat away from bringing _Infidel_ down on her when she pulled the gun from its holster and fired. The Dark Assassin fell back as a tirade of red hot bullets slammed into him.

Monica felt like she could lie there forever, gasping her fatigue and relief to the fiery sky in the blimp above. She'd won, and she was alive. But she only allowed herself three seconds to recover before getting up. When she did, her energy flooded back in a flurry of panic and she had her broken sword handle back in her hand instantly.

The Dark Assassin was still alive!

The terrifying man was crouched on the deck- impossibly, _unbelievably_- alive! He looked worn out, but there wasn't a single wound or drop of blood to be seen. Not a single dent or scratch marred his armour.

The assassin glared at the princess and tried to rise, but he fell back to his knees. He clutched a hand to his chest in pain. Despite whatever dark power he had, it had drained him to survive the mortal wounds Monica had dealt him. The girl's shock turned to smug pleasure- the Dark Assassin could be hurt, and that surely meant he could also be killed.

"Uh," Gaspard grunted. "Impressive. Yours skills outmatch even your father's."

Monica instantly dismissed the idea.

"Not so easy when you can't get a chance to backstab your opponent." she mocked. That was clearly how Gaspard had managed to defeat her father- trickery, deception, cowardice. That was all there was to it.

"Face it Gaspard. You've lost!" Monica advanced on the Dark Assassin and thrust the remainder of her shattered blade in his face. The man looked impassively into her eyes. The broken long sword was next to useless for combat, but what was left of it was still enough to cut off the Dark Assassin's head.

Monica paused to savour her victory. This was her chance to strike down Emperor Griffin's most feared commander and turn the tide of the battle for the future in one blow. The chance to pay back Gaspard in kind for what he did to King Ebenezer Raybrandt.

'_This,'_ she thought as her grip tightened _'is for my father.'_

…

And that's when she stopped.

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_**Sorry for giving you another filler chapter. I'm working to get round this slow period that this fic seems to have met. The next update will be the last part of this chapter, and with any luck my writing will become a bit more interesting again. Thank you all for your patience.**_


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